What Will We Do?
by fantasywriter24
Summary: It shouldn't matter. They were married. Being pregnant was acceptable...wasn't it? But can they manage with the dangerous, unpredictable life they led? -Timebaby fic! River and 11th Doctor! -Read and Review!
1. Tears of Truth

**I couldn't help myself...I love the idea of River and the Doctor having a baby, so I had to write a story about it! I hope you enjoy the first chapter. Please please please read and review. The more you review the faster I will have the next chapter up!...Funny how that works, isn't it? Well...enjoy.**

**(Takes place right after the Wedding of River Song. Season 6 spoilers)**

**Oh yes, I sadly do not own the brilliance of Doctor Who or any of the lovely characters.**

* * *

The rain pounded against her cell window as it always did. She never minded the sound. It was rather relaxing after all the excitement she always had popping up in her very less than average life. But today was quiet. River was sitting alone on her bed with her elbows resting on her knees and her forehead in her hands. Worry was etched into the lines of her pretty face, but her corkscrew curls fell as a curtain around her face to hide it from any of the guards who were constantly patrolling up and down the corridor to keep her in check—not that they ever could, but they put in the best effort they could. Right now she did not want them to know anything was wrong. She absolutely did not want them to know why tears were threatening to spill out of her smoky green eyes.

As she sat wishing for a solution to fall out of the sky a sound began to mingle with the rain. She looked up and strained her ears to catch it. She knew that sound. She knew that sound almost better than any other in the world except….

"Hi honey! I'm home!" his voice. Standing before the bars of her cell was a tall lanky man in a tweed jacket and an absurd bowtie. He was smiling ridiculously at her as he soniced the lock of the cell and opened the door.

"Hello Sweetie," greeted River trying to quickly wipe the melancholy emotions she had been feeling from her face and replace them with one of her playful smiles, but the Doctor was too quick. He was always too quick even for her.

"River, what's wrong?" he asked, but before either of them could say another word lights began flashing and an ear-splitting siren shrieked throughout the prison.

"Ah, perhaps we better adjourn to the Tardis?" suggested River. She then took the Doctor's hand and practically dragged him out of her cell and into the hall. Together they sprinted the few feet to the Tardis where they tumbled in after each other smiling broadly at each other. River let out a relieved laugh and the Doctor skipped about merrily to the console of his beloved machine. He'd already completely forgotten he was asking River what was the matter. He was too excited to be off on another adventure.

"Where to today my wife?" he inquired as he pulled a lever here and smashed down a button there.

"Where are we, Doctor?" she inquired not moving to correct the mistakes he was making, but instead pulling out her beloved and battered blue diary.

"Oh yes! I'd nearly forgotten. Um….you and I just got married!" he announced very brightly as he threw his arms in the air and spun around in a very Doctorish fashion.

"That isn't too bad then. I'm a bit further along than that, but not by much," she replied, secretly having a double meaning to those words.

"Oh good! We're almost linear! That's brilliant….and new. Never been linear with our timelines before….interesting!" he began to ramble as he resumed his skipping around the console. Meanwhile River had walked to the couch and sat down, resting her head on the back of it and closing her eyes wearily.

"Now, where should we go today? I fancy a party. Perhaps we could go to a party in the 80s. I bet that would be interesting. Or maybe we could go see how the cavemen boogied. Or we could…." Suddenly the Doctor stopped his over-excited monologue and his jerking movements to stand staring at River who was sitting on the couch and looking as if she was asleep. This was very odd behavior. She hadn't even gone to get her blaster yet. She never went anywhere without her blaster.

"Uh….River?" he questioned uncertainly as he took a few hesitant steps in her direction.

"Yes, Sweetie?' she replied not moving or even opening her eyes.

"Are you….um…all right?" he questioned. "You haven't corrected my driving once—and where is your blaster?"

"I'm just tired, dear. Quite tired," she answered letting the weariness show in her voice. She knew why she was tired and she knew he was going to want to know, but how could she possibly tell him?

"River, what's going on?" he asked slowly, eyeing her suspiciously. He moved to sit next to her rather awkwardly, but kept his eyes steadily on her. She turned her head to look at him, and for a moment they just sat that way. They watched each other wondering what the other would do next.

"It's complicated," she finally answered and turned her gaze away from him so she didn't have to continue to look into his very old and very kind eyes. She sighed and wondered why she had ever let this happen.

"River, look at me. Tell me what is going on. You know I can help you. I'm the king of complicated! It's my middle name…well, no, it's not…but that's not the point. Tell me," he urged, keeping himself from going off on a tangent. He reached out and took her hand, giving it an encouraging squeeze. He didn't move to hug or comfort her in any other way. He was very aware that she would probably not appreciate it. River was always so strong and independent. She never wanted help or consolation unless she specifically sought it out and it seemed right now was one of the moments where she absolutely didn't want to be coddled.

Eventually she did look at him, but when she did it was such a sad look that it nearly broke the Doctor's hearts. She gave his hand another squeeze before standing and walking a few paces away from the couch. The next time she spoke her back was to him so he couldn't see her face or the tear sliding down her cheek. She wasn't usually like this—so emotional, but right now was not a time she could control it.

"Doctor, I'm pregnant," she whispered so quietly he almost didn't hear her. Shock flashed onto his face as the words sunk in. That was not what he was expecting to hear. He had suspected she'd gotten herself into a bind she couldn't get out of on her own or that she'd seen something horrifying that even strong River couldn't handle, but not this.

"Pregnant?...With—a baby?" he asked stupidly, frozen in place where he sat on the couch.

"Yes, I am." She turned to him as more tears began streaming down her face. She looked at him sadly and waited for what he would say next.


	2. Explanations

******Okay...wow. Can I just say wow? All you briliant, brilliant people have made me ever so happy! Thank you so much to all of you who have, read, reviewed, followed, and favorited this story! It makes me so so so so happy. You don't even know...so thank you!**

**Here is the next chapter. Not action-packed or anything. Kind of fluffy, but important and very sweet, I think. Please read and review. Reviews are always ever so appreciated and the more reviews I get the faster the next chapter will go up...as always. Hope you enjoy reading!**

**(By the way I am very American, so if any of the words I use are incorrect I do apologize. I try not to even attempt to use the British words for things because I'd probably be wrong.)**

**Sadly I do not own Doctor Who or any of the brilliance which is Steven Moffat.**

* * *

"Hey, River, don't cry. Why would that be sad? Babies are lovely," the Doctor said so kindly as he got up from his place on the couch and moved to her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her face. "And your baby will have the best mum ever." He gave her an encouraging smile and rubbed her arms. At this she let out a half sob, half laugh.

"Oh, River," he breathed and stepped forward to envelope her in a hug. He didn't care how strongly independent she was. River was crying and he didn't like it.

"I—I'm so frightened, Doctor. So frightened," she murmured as she clung to him, welcoming the support of her brilliant Doctor.

"No need to be scared, River. Look at me. This baby, this beautiful baby growing inside you right now will have an amazing life. Look around you. This will be its playground." The Doctor gestured grandly with both arms to the room as he took a step back. "This baby will have all of time and space as its backyard! And whenever it wants it can poke its little head out of these doors…" The Doctor moved to pull open the doors of the Tardis until he realized there was banging coming from the other side. He scrunched up his face into a disgruntled expression and poked his head out of the door.

"Oi! You lot! Stop banging on the blue box. It's ancient! And you're interrupting something very, very important! Hey, no guns! Don't you point a gun at me! Don't make me use this!" River watched him whip his sonic out of his pocket. She knew it was harmless, but the Stormcage guards on the other side of the doors didn't know that. "Yeah, that's right, back up. No, I probably won't be bringing Doctor Song back any time soon, so you'll just have to carry on without her. Sorry." With that he pulled his head back inside the Tardis and slammed the door.

"Ah, that's better," he sighed as he smiled at River brightly. "No more interruptions."

"You ridiculous man," she laughed as she wiped away the remaining tears still clinging to her cheeks.

"That's me," he gave her a small bow making her laugh once more.

"Now, tell me Doctor River Song, where would you like to go? Anywhere, or everywhere, or somewhere in between?"

"I've got an idea," she gave him her usual knowing smile before moving to the console where she began to drive expertly like always.

"Ha ha! This is more like it!" shouted the Doctor happily as he gave an over-excited twirl before moving to assist River in the driving. It was a quick and smooth ride to their destination. The Doctor didn't even realize they were there until River announced it.

"Here, my love," she told him as she made her way to the Tardis doors.

"What? No we're not. It didn't make the noise—the landy noise. You know…" his voice trailed off as she looked over her shoulder and smiled flirtatiously at him.

"I don't leave the brakes on when I drive."

"Oh, shut up!" He threw his hands in the air then followed her. "So tell me where we are.

"Right here," she pulled open the doors of the Tardis to reveal deep space. They were surrounded by stars and were staring at a huge supernova right before them, which they were in orbit around.

"No adventures today, Miss Song?" inquired the Doctor as he watched her bend down and sit right in the doorway with her legs swinging off.

"Not today, Sweetie," she replied as she watched him bend his skinny legs and take a seat beside her.

"Tell me why you're scared, River," he prompted her after a moment.

"Doctor, think about what I went through as a child. I was made into a weapon, my love. There are more than enough people in this universe who would kill to get their hands on a Timelord child, even if it wasn't full Timelord. To know there are people out there who would want to steal my baby breaks my heart, Doctor. I won't let what happened to me happen to my child," River spilled her thoughts and worries to the Doctor without even a second's hesitation.

"You know I will do everything in my power to keep you and your baby safe," he replied simply as he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. She was crying again, but he didn't move to touch or hold her.

"I know you will, Doctor. No baby could have a better guardian than mine," she whispered with a small sob before reaching out and taking the Doctor's hand. Together they sat in silence for a while, admiring the beauty laid out before them and simply enjoying being in each other's company. The Doctor was becoming a little impatient to be off somewhere exciting, but he knew River needed quiet at the moment, so he wasn't going to argue. He knew how moody pregnant women could be. As he sat mulling through his mind to find something to keep him entertained a question occurred to him.

"River, who's the father," he suddenly asked turning to her with curiosity written all over his young face and hooked deep in his old eyes. She turned to him looking a little surprised and searched his face to see if he was joking. She concluded he was being very serious.

"Oh God," she murmured, "I shouldn't have told you yet—it's too early."

"What are you talking about?" confusion now mingled with the curiosity on his face.

"Spoilers," she gave him a wry smile and stood, straightening the grey tank top she was wearing.

"Who invented that word?" he demanded bouncing to his feet and looking very annoyed. "I hate that word. It's a horrid word. We should get rid of it."

"It's your word, dear," River reminded him as she rolled her eyes and walked back to the console where she pulled down a lever and began pushing all kinds of buttons.

"Well, I never liked it. Never liked it even a little bit! Bah! Where are we going?"

"It's time for me to go back to Stormcage, Sweetie," she informed him with just a hint of sadness in her voice. She always hated leaving him, but she knew she had to.

"Fine, if you insist. I guess I'll just have to go find another blaster wielding curly haired woman who is sassy and flirty to have an adventure with me…" he pretended to look very hurt as he said this and moved away from River to spin a dial on the console.

"I know you mean you're just going to go get another me at a different point in my timestream," River informed him knowingly as she leaned around the console to look at him.

"No one asked you!" he blurted as the Tardis jerked into movement and he slid around the console until he'd fallen right into her.

"Well, hello there, Sweetie," she greeted with a slight purr in her voice.

"I was just in the neighborhood, thought I'd slide on by," he joked as he gave her a playful shove then moved to flip a few switches.

"I think you'll be finding a very different adventure is waiting for you with the other me you'll be getting in a few minutes," River said conversationally as she parked the Tardis right next to her cell. He looked at her with one eyebrow raised as she grabbed her diary and headed for the doors.

"Ah, spoilers," she winked then opened the doors and moved to walk out.

"River Song, my wife, you get back here this instant," demanded the Doctor surprising her a bit with his stern tone.

"Why?" she asked slightly defiantly as she turned around, but made no move to walk back to where he stood at the console.

"I haven't kissed you yet today," he answered giving her a flirtatious smile.

"Oh, you bad boy, no you haven't," she growled as she ran back to him and threw her arms around his neck. Their lips smashed together and they kissed for much longer than would have been acceptable if someone else had been on the Tardis with them. River finally pulled away from him looking flushed and very pleased.

"Better?" she asked with her arms still around his neck.

"Better," he agreed before placing another kiss on top of her head. "Now off you pop back to your cell to make mischief for your guards. I will be seeing you soon."

"Yes, you will," she replied making him look very infuriated. She strode knowingly out of the Tardis and shut the doors behind her leaving the Doctor alone to let the events of that afternoon stew in his brain.

Meanwhile the bright smile which had plastered itself on River's face began to fade as the sound of the Tardis leaving reached her ears. She couldn't watch it go. It always hurt her heart. She sighed and stepped into her cell then shut the door, ignoring the sirens which were still going full power all around.

"Will you turn those things off? I'm back. Goodness," she rolled her eyes and sat down on her bed to begin writing a new entry into her journal, but not before she peeked at the last one. The one the Doctor was on his way to experiencing—the conception of their child.


	3. Discovery

**There are no words to express how thrilled I am at the response this story has been getting! I'm so very glad you all are enjoying it, so I've been trying to pump out a new chapter for you every day. Here is the next one. It's a lot of nice sweet and funny fluffiness, but the fluff it my favorite so...I hope you like it!**

**Reviews are so very appreciated. Leave one please because I'd really love to know what you think. The more reviews I get the faster the next chapter will go up, just like always.**

**Enjoy! Allons-y!**

* * *

"Doctor River Song! You have some explaining to do!" His voice rang through the prison making her look up in surprise. She hadn't even heard the Tardis land—she always heard it, but she had been so engrossed about arguing with her guard about whether handcuffs were necessary for a trip to the shower.

"Doctor Song, it's protocol," replied the guard helplessly, looking half frightened as he stood in the doorway of her cell with handcuffs in his hands. All the guards were very aware of the infamous River Song and none of them wanted to meet her hallucinogenic lipstick. Before either River or the guard could say anything the Doctor came staggering into her cell with his hair in even more of a jumbled mess than usual. His bowtie was undone and one of his bracers was hanging haphazardly around his waist.

"Hello, I need to borrow her. Thanks. I'll bring her back….eventually," the Doctor flashed the guard a quick smile and grabbed River's wrist to begin pulling her out of her cell to the pure astonishment of the young guard.

"Hello, Sweetie," River greeted in amusement before sliding past the guard and out of her cell, "What happened to you?"

"You did," answered the Doctor awkwardly, but then he smiled excitedly at River.

"I'm going to…"but before he could finish he was interrupted by the guard.

"Stop right there!" The guard had suddenly came to his senses and raised his gun to point it straight at the Doctor and River who had almost made it to where the Tardis was parked. The Doctor rolled his eyes and let go of River.

"What is it with guns? Why do people always point guns at me? It really never is a good idea. I hate guns. Guns are rubbish and bad. Put that down. There is something very important I need to discuss with Doctor Song right now," he looked very annoyed as he said this to the guard, gesturing wildly with his arms. He was very impatient to get on with what he had to say.

"I'm sorry. I can't do that. Doctor Song is a prisoner here and I can't just let you take her," answered the guard sounding braver than he looked. He knew I wasn't a good idea to try to stop River from leaving prison, no one ever achieved it. She did as she pleased, but it was his job and, he had to do it.

"Well, she's my wife, so—I win." With that speech the Doctor pulled his sonic out of his trouser pocket and pointed it at the guard. There was a bang and a cascade of sparks from the gun then the Doctor put the sonic back into his pocket, turning his attention back to River. A broad grin broke upon his face and happiness sparked in his eyes.

"I'm going to be…." he began quite loudly. River knowingly smiled back at him, but she placed a finger over his lips.

"Shhhh," she instructed.

"What did you do to my gun?" demanded the guard looking shocked. The Doctor and River turned their attention back to the guard.

"Disabled it," was the Doctor's simple reply as he poked his head into the Tardis. Looking angry the guard ran to a large red button on the wall and slammed his fist down on it making lights begin to flash and sirens go off. River looked very annoyed as she stepped into the Tardis.

"Is all that really necessary? They'll never get here in time to catch me anyway" she informed the guard pointedly before slamming the Tardis doors.

"Hey, now, be nice to her. No slamming the doors. She's ancient," scolded the Doctor as River turned to look at him from where she was next to the doors. He had made his way up to the console where he was leaning casually. He'd straightened his appearance, so he no longer looked quite as much like he'd just rolled out of bed.

"Yes, she is," River gave a small smile and patted the railing where her hand was resting. Her eyes glazed over for a moment as she thought about the beauty of the Tardis, but she was interrupted by the Doctor who cleared his throat impatiently.

"Yes, dear?" River looked back up at him with a teasing smile on her face.

"Where are we?" he questioned quickly as he hopped down the stairs to where she was standing.

"After the wedding—I've seen you a few times already. The last time was two days ago when I told you something important," she answered with a wink.

"Me too, but I just saw you…" he blushed slightly as his voice trailed off and he pulled at his bowtie making River laugh outright.

"We're linear again," she declared looking quite pleased about it.

"River…."

"Yes?" she knew what was coming next and she almost couldn't bear waiting.

"I'm going to be a dad!" he nearly shouted this as he threw his arms in the air and looked at her with the happiest expression on his face she had ever seen.

"Yes, you are," she replied with a girlish laugh.

"How did I not even realize…" the smile suddenly disappeared from his face and he looked rather puzzled.

"Because you're thick," she murmured as she leaned up against him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Yeah, I am. Too much stuff in my brain," he muttered back as he touched his nose to hers. She smiled at him and placed a kiss on his lips before pulling away and leaning on the railing, waiting to see what he would say next.

"How far along?" he questioned next.

"I believe it's close to six weeks," she replied as fondness and worry mingled in her voice.

"A baby, River! A baby!" The Doctor just couldn't contain his excitement. He was running and spinning and hopping all around the console room because he couldn't think of any other way to vent his happiness.

"This calls for celebration! Let's go on an adventure! Where shall we go? Nowhere with rain, your prison makes me very not fond of rain….but there is this wonderful planet with purple sand that rains pink bubbles and when you pop one it giggles. Shall we go there, River? Or—oh we could go to the planet of the coffee shops….wait—I hate that planet. No, that's a bad idea. Shall we stop and get the Ponds…." he suddenly stopped talking and turned to River looking just a little horrified. She was looking very, very amused.

"Oh—The Ponds. Rory the Roman, and Amelia Pond—we have to tell them, don't we?" he asked nervously all his previous excitement suddenly drained.

"Yes, dear, they are my parents, but let's not tell them yet; not until we know…nothing's going to happen," answered River, carefully picking her words.

"Happen? What could happen?"

"I just don't want to get them excited and then…." she stopped talking and looked away from the Doctor. There were so many worries flowing through her mind. There had been since she had discovered she was pregnant. If this had been a more normal circumstance she probably would have just let herself be happy about it, but there were so many things that could go wrong. A Timelord baby, nearly full Timelord, being carried by a half-human woman who couldn't keep herself from getting tangled up in messes and gun fights no matter how hard she tried. Something was bound to go wrong and she was just waiting for the day it would.

"River, everything is going to be fine. It's going to be more than fine. We're having a baby," the Doctor said to her encouragingly. She gave him a half smile and a small nod.

"Let's just wait to tell them, okay?" she asked and he quickly agreed.

"We'll wait." Then the smile spread across his face once more and he began skipping and whirring around the console pushing buttons and pulling levers. He spun a dial here and typed something in there until the Tardis gave a great lurch and they were souring through the Time Vortex.

"Where are we going?" asked River curiously as she tried to peak at the scanner, but he tugged it away from her.

"Ah ah. It's a surprise!"


	4. Darkness

**You all are amazing. So brilliant! Thank you for all the reviews and favorites and followers! You guys are why I write (please forgive the cheesiness) And I am ever so sorry I didn't update earlier in the day like I usually do. I had to work all day, but here is the next chapter. It's a bit shorter, but I'm offering up some action and some interesting twists, which I hope you will enjoy.**

**I have a task for you all. I am fairly certain of which villains I am going to be using in the story, but I'd like your guys' input on which ones you would like to see. I'll accept any and all requests except the weeping angels. (they won't work with the plot.) Let me know in your review or a pm!**

**I'll let you get to reading now. Hope you enjoy! Leave a review. The more I get the faster the next chapter goes up. And you'll want it quick. Trust me.**

**I don't own Doctor Who or any of the Characters.**

* * *

"And now, my wire, we have arrived!" announced the Doctor proudly as the Tardis made the beautiful landing sound he loved so much. He ignored River rolling her eyes at him. She always chided him about leaving the breaks on, but that was the Tardis sound. He couldn't just get rid of it.

"Where is it we've arrived, Sweetie?" she inquired as she moved to the door with curiosity clear on her face. She enjoyed the surprise trips he always took her on and she knew this one would be brilliant because it was particularly special. They were celebrating the conception of their child. The Doctor watched with satisfaction as River strapped her blaster holster on and placed the blaster securely inside before moving toward the doors. She just wasn't River without a gun within arm's reach.

She pulled the Tardis doors open and her mouth fell open. Before her, set against a pink sky were souring towers of glass that glittered and shined as a sun of infinite color and beauty shone on them. A soft hum was coming from the towers and it seemed to be drawing her in.

"Oh Doctor," she breathed, not knowing what else to say. The sight was breath-taking. The look on his face was not one of awe, but one of shock.

"What? No! River, no! Get back!" he shouted at her as he lurched forward and slammed the Tardis doors before she could step out of its protection. He stood leaning against them panting and wondering why the Tardis had brought them here. He hadn't even ever planned on telling her about this place. If she didn't know about it perhaps that would delay the imminence of their last meeting. It was not time yet. They still had so many adventures to be had. Their baby…a lump rose in his throat, but he did his best to ignore it.

"Doctor, what is going on? What was that out there?" River's hands were on his hips as she looked at him with impatience written all over her face.

"Ah, yes, that. Well—you see…" he quickly straightened up, cleared his throat nervously, and adjusted his bowtie before moving forward toward the console. He needed to get them out of here as fast as he could.

"Yes?" she pressed raising a blonde eyebrow at him. He sighed and looked down at the console where he was covertly pressing buttons to take off. They were leaving. He wasn't even looking at where he was taking them. Anywhere was better than where they were now.

"It was the Singing Towers of Darillium," he admitted with a small catch in his throat, but River didn't seem to notice. She just kept pressing him for more information. He knew there was no hiding it from her now, so he spoke honestly.

"Why can't we stay? It's beautiful," was her next question.

"It's not time yet," he answered, not looking at her.

"Not time yet?"

"Spoilers." He almost sobbed out the last word, but the Tardis lurched forward as they spun into the time vortex, so it masked his grief. River did not push further. There was a silent agreement between them when the word "spoilers" was mentioned. They both knew it could mean collapsing timelines if they knew information before the proper time. River was holding tightly to the side of the console as she fumbled to steady the dangerously shaking Tardis. Both she and the Doctor were sliding around helplessly, so she was unable to change anything.

"What did you do?" she yelled over the sound of the whining Tardis.

"I don't know," the Doctor replied in exasperation. He knew he should really pay attention when he drove, but his mind had been distracted. They had been at Darillium. Suddenly the Tardis jolted to a halt sending both the Doctor and River to the floor.

It was less than a second before the Doctor had sprung to his feet and bound to where River lay face down. His hands fluttered over her as he knelt down to make sure she was all right. His face contorted from surprise to worry to confusion in less than a second.

"River! Are you all right?" he asked helplessly as he began to quickly imagine all the ways of possibly reviving her.

"Fish fingers and custard…no. That's just yummy…detox…no wrong circumstances. Kissing—is that what the humans do—oh what is that drowning-mouth-kissing-breath-thingy…." he scratched his head hopelessly as he got caught up in trying to remember a word while River continued to lay on the floor before him.

"I hate you," the sound of River's voice floated to his ears like a breath of fresh air and he was brought back from his thoughts.

"No, you don't," replied is sing-song voice as he held out a hand to River who was pulling herself up from the ground. "Oh good, no permanent damage—unless you keep looking at me like that. It's rumored that people who glare as often as you do get permanent glare face and look dreadful for the rest of eternity." After this absurd speech he winked at her and she couldn't help but lift a corner of her lips into a saucy smile as they ventured toward the Tardis doors together, holding hands without even realizing it.

"Environmental checks?" she asked as his hand reached out to pull open the doors. He opened his mouth to protest, but she cut in quickly.

"For the baby, Sweetie," she looked up at him through her long eyelashes with a pout on her face. His eyes grew wide and he swallowed awkwardly before nodding in agreement. Her smile turned playful as he turned to hop back up the stairs to peek at the scanner. He read it hurriedly then sprinted back down to her side.

"We are safe to exit, Doctor Song," he announced happily then pulled open the doors to reveal…

Nothing. It was pitch black. Even the light of the Tardis illuminated nothing. It seemed almost as if the darkness was eating up the light. Warily the Doctor took a step out of the safety of his time machine and squinted into the black hoping to see something—anything for that matter.

"Torches! We need torches!" he burst out as a rush of energy seemed to catch him and he sped back to rummage around in an unseen location of the console room before returning with two torches and handed one to River.

"It's so dark," she murmured as they once more left the Tardis, closing the doors behind them and relying only on their senses and the weak beams of the torches for guidance.

"Is it night-time?" he whispered back. They were surrounded by such deep and utter silence that it felt almost insulting to disturb it.

"Perhaps we should go back…" she breathed in return. She turned around to locate the Tardis, but shock and dread cross her face when she discovered her beam did not illuminate the beautiful blue exterior. It touched only more darkness. In less than a minute they had already lost the Tardis—their key to escape if things turned out badly.

"Doctor, she's not there. The Tardis—I can't find her" there was just a hint of panic in River's voice as she turned to where she saw the beam of light belonging to the Doctor's torch. It was turned in the direction of her voice now. His came floating back to her in a hush, but she could hear the earnestness and the commanding tone rippling through the tones.

"River, take my hand. Take it right now." The Tardis was gone, but he wasn't going to lose River too. They needed to stay together. He reached out his hand in the direction of her voice, his long fingers stretched for her, waiting to be met with the cool, smooth surface of her beautiful skin.

Instead of her hand he felt nothing but the cold, slightly thick air and then the sound of her scream met his ears and the darkness was lit with the blaze of her blaster shooting in every direction. The whirl of their torches and her blaster looked like fireworks. To an onlooker who didn't understand it could have appeared like a beautiful light show, but it was not. It was an ambush and it was River desperately trying to murder her attackers before they could reach her Doctor as they had gotten to her.

She fell to the floor with her eyes wide in surprise as a gasp brushed through her lips. The wind was knocked out of her and she could feel her hearts racing in her chest. She dropped her torch and clung to her chest where she had been shot. She heard the Doctor cry her name before her eyes fluttered shut and the blackness surrounding them engulfed her mind as well. The last thing she remember was a pair of strong arms wrapping themselves in their warmth and the gentle scratch of tweed against her cheek.

* * *

**Edit: I just went through the last part and discovered all the major mistakes I made. I fixed it and apologize to my readers for my horrible lack of ability to stay in the proper tense. It was late last night when I wrote this and didn't proof-read. I know...my own fault. It's fixed now. Also River got shot in the chest not the side, which I fixed in the story as well. Again, sorry, I hope you will continue to read on!**


	5. The Doctor Lies

**I still cannot believe the amazing response I am getting from all of you lovely readers! It's just...mindblowing to me! Thank you all for reading so much and I hope you continue to read on!**

**I want to apologize for any and all bad grammar and spelling mistakes in this and/or any of my chapters. I'm a really bad proofreader and sometimes I don't do it at all...oops.**

**Well, here is a nice intense chapter for you where you get...The Ponds! Not a proper 11/River story without them.**

**I don't own anything Doctor Who...sadly.**

**Happy Reading! Allons-y!**

* * *

"Help me." He stood despondently on the steps of the Pond's residence with the Tardis parked on the lawn and a limp River in his arms. It was Amy who answered the door and at the sight of him carrying her daughter unconscious in his arms and her dress soaked in blood made the red-headed woman's face drain of all color. For a moment she stood there in shock with her eyes locked on River. Then suddenly anger twisted its way onto her face and she launched herself at the Doctor who was unable to move because of the woman in his arms.

"What have you done!" screeched Amy as she tried to harm him without touching River in the process. "What did you do to my daughter!" There were tears streaking down her face. It was difficult for the Doctor to see her like this and keep his composure, but he had to for River. Amy had to cooperate with him if there was any chance of saving River before it was too late. The chances were slim already, but if Amy couldn't get ahold of herself there may be no chance at all.

"Amy! Amy! Stop! I can save her! You have to stop so I can save her. Please, let me in!...Rory!" the Doctor pleaded to no avail with Amy and in the end shouted for Rory whom he knew would be more level headed. The panic must have been evident in his voice because not seconds later Rory appeared in the doorway looking slightly out of breath. His eyes widened in horror as they fell on the scene before him—River in the Doctor's arms with Amy trying to rip out his hair.

"What happened?" he demanded as he stepped forward to try to keep Amy at bay so the Doctor could have a chance to explain.

"No time to explain. Keep her back," ordered the Doctor as he flew past Rory and into the house.

"Doctor you tell me what happened to my daughter!" shouted Amy through her tears as all of them entered the dining room.

"Get everything off the table now," was the only reply Amy got. She bit her lip and glared at him, but did as she was told. She knew better than to argue at a moment like this. She did as all the Doctor's friends did: as she was told. As gently as he could the Doctor laid River down on the table then turned to Amy and Rory who were standing nearby waiting and hoping to be given something—anything to do to help save their beloved daughter.

"Amy, come here," the Doctor instructed in that tone he used when things were very serious. He spoke in a low volume, but there was such intensity and urgency in his voice that it was impossible to ignore him. Amy stepped forward obediently and quickly wiped the tears from her eyes. Her fit of rage was over. She knew now was the time to act. She couldn't be emotional—like she always told the Doctor.

"Put your hands here. Push down as hard as you can and don't let go for anything. You need to stop the bleeding," as he spoke the Doctor placed Amy's hands right over the crimson stain covering the chest of River's dress. Amy blinked back tears as she stood putting pressure on the wound and stared into the lifeless face of her daughter.

Their lives may have been complicated, confusing, and not in the right order. River happened to be older, and Amy hadn't been there as a mum for her childhood, but River was still her daughter and she was lying on their dining room table getting closer to death with every second. As Amy stood over her it felt to the young woman as if her heart had been the one to be shot through and was now shattered into millions of pieces. She now knew she had not known grief until this moment.

"Rory, you too," ordered the Doctor as he pulled River's father forward and placed his hands over the wound as well. Together the Ponds stood holding the last whips of their daughter's life in her chest with their own hands. The Doctor left them that way and disappeared into the kitchen where he began grabbing a mess of different ingredients and throwing them into a put on the stove which he turned up full blast. He was muttering to himself as he worked. It alternated between instructions and harsh scoldings for himself.

The entire time he worked he could feel himself unbraiding at the seams. There was a lump in his throat which was making it very difficult to breath and he could barely see through the film of tears covering his eyes. Lying in the next room on that table was his wife; his beautiful and sassy wife who had been fine and smiling only moments ago. He couldn't understand what had happened. He still didn't know what planet they had landed on. As soon as River had been shot his only thought was to get her back into the Tardis and somewhere he could save her. He hoped that he could think up something to save her and his unborn child. He had to save them…they had so much to come.

Finally his concoction was finished. He ladled it into a bowl, managing to slop quite a bit on the counter, but didn't care because the only important thing in the universe at that moment was his wife carrying his child. He raced back into the dining room, sloshing the mushy liquid everywhere and rushed to the Ponds who were leaning on each other trying to encourage one another to be brave as they hoped for the best. If he was right this mixture would be just what River needed to get her second heart beating again.

"Hold on, River, hold on," whispered the Doctor as he stood by her head and lifted it slightly, so the liquid could slip into her mouth. Amy and Rory watched hopefully, both staring on with tear-streaked faces, but neither moved from the jobs they had been ordered to by the Doctor.

"Massage her throat, Doctor, it will help the liquid go down faster," piped up Rory, drawing on knowledge he had from being a nurse. The Doctor gave a small nod and did as Rory said. He alternated between pouring the liquid into her mouth and trying to get it to go down her throat.

"What are you doing doctor?" Amy whispered because she was unable to speak any louder. The Doctor didn't look at her as he replied.

"I have to restart that heart. The shot stopped it, but I can't do it the normal way because there's a gaping hole in the way…this has to work. She doesn't have any regenerations left." He swallowed his grief and poured the last of the liquid into River's mouth. For a moment the three of them stood in silence. The Doctor was searching River's face and body for any change. He didn't know what else to do.

"Doctor! Doctor—her heart—I can feel it. It's weak, but it's beating!" Amy's face lit up as she looked down at her and Rory's hands placed firmly over the damaged heart of their daughter. The Doctor's mouth fell open and he leapt to stand next to Amy, pushing her and Rory's hands out of the way so he could lean down and listen for a heartbeat. Amy was right. It was there. It was faint, and too slow, but it was beating and that was what mattered. Now, if he could be fast enough she could be saved.

"The Tardis! Into the Tardis!" he yelled as he lifted River from the table and nearly ran out of the house with the Ponds in tow. Together they all pelted into the Tardis. The Doctor passed River off to Rory as he bounded to the console where he set coordinates faster than he ever had before. In mere seconds they were whirring through space until the Tardis landed with only a light jolt. The Doctor patted the console affectionately before moving away from it. She knew it was a dire situation and time was of the essence. His beautiful old girl never failed him.

He strode to Rory and took the unconscious River back into his own arms. She was his wife and his responsibility. Quickly he moved to the Tardis doors with the Ponds in tow, as always, but there was silence between them. Words weren't important. River was what was important: saving her life.

They walked into a pristine white environment which Rory and Amy recognized immediately. It was not the first time they had carried and unconscious River through the Tardis doors and into this place. It was the hospital of the Sisters of the Infinite Schism and the best one in the world.

"I need help right now!" shouted the Doctor without a moment's hesitation. Immediately they were surrounded by feline women dressed in white. They swept River away leaving the Doctor standing with Amy and Rory helpless to do anymore.

"She'll be fine," he told them as he stood watching the retreating backs of the people he was trusting to save the lives of the two most important people in his life.

"Are you sure, Doctor," asked Amy softly. He turned to her and saw the pain painted all over her face.

"Permission to hug?" ventured the Doctor as he looked at Rory. The man nodded and the Doctor stepped forward to engulf them both into a hug—much to the surprise of Rory.

"I have faith in them. Now that both her hearts are working they should be able to save her," replied the Doctor as he rubbed Amy's back soothingly.

"Doctor, what happened? How did she get shot?" asked Rory as he broke away from the hug to look the Doctor square in the face. The color drained from the Doctor's face and he averted his eyes from the very serious gazes of Amy and Rory. He didn't want to have to explain. How could he tell the truth without explaining about Darillium.

He decided it would be best to stick to rule number one—the Doctor lies.


	6. Questions

**Hello to all you lovely readers! I send out my deepest grattitude for all the beautiulf reviews and all the follows and favorites I have been getting. It's brilliant! Really-it just makes me ever so happy! Keep it up people! More reviews I get the faster the chapters go up!**

**Here is the next chapter. It's kind of a bit of a filler, but some of the questions asked will come into play later on. And plus-I just like it, so here you are! Enjoy and happy reading!**

* * *

The Doctor and the Ponds sat squashed onto a tiny bench in the sterile white hall of the hospital. The Doctor was sitting with his elbows resting on his knees staring at the floor. Occasionally he would run his hand nervously through his already messy hair in impatience. They were taking so long with River and he was nearly bursting with worry. Amy was sitting with her head on Rory's shoulder as he held her comfortingly. None of them spoke. The Doctor had already told the Pond's how everything had happened with a few snips and shavings off the actual truth, of course. He couldn't let anyone know about Darillium and that he knew how River died.

"Doctor, you really have no idea why the Tardis went haywire like that?" Amy asked suddenly as she turned to look at the Doctor. She, having spent a great deal of time with her raggedy Doctor aboard the Tardis, couldn't understand why the seemingly always faithful machine would take them somewhere to harm River, the child it had created.

"I don't know. The only thing I can tell you is when she was human—well, you know, when she was Idris, she told me she didn't always take me where I wanted to go, but she's always took me where I need to go."

"But why would you need to go somewhere that River could have died? The Tardis loves River," Amy questioned again, trying desperately to get to the bottom of why her daughter had come so close to death.

"I don't…" the Doctor began to answer sounding a little irritated, but stopped short when one of the feline women dressed in white approached them. All three looked up hopefully, but Rory was the one to speak first, which was very out of the ordinary.

"What is it?" the worried father demanded as he held even tighter to his wife.

"We've done all we can," answered the feline smoothly.

"And?" pressed the Doctor impatiently, jumping to his feet due to being unable to sit any longer.

"She is still alive. We've done all we can, but now it is left up to her. With rest and care we expect a full recovery." The woman smiled at the three of them. Amy and Rory hugged each other tightly while the Doctor whooped and threw his sonic in the air to express his great joy.

"There is something else we discovered…" the woman began to say, but the Doctor quickly interceded before she could say anything more.

"Ah, yes! How about you and I discuss that over here, yeah?" The Doctor put an arm around the nurse enthusiastically and led her further down the hall away from Amy and Rory. The married couple watched in confusion as the Doctor shared a hurried and hushed conversation with the nurse. When he returned he was smiling brightly and beamed down on the Ponds.

"Well, we can go see her now. She's not awake, but they said we can go anyway," he announced joyously as he reached out and pulled both the Ponds off the bench nearly making all three of them fall over in the process. Once they were all steadied and moving toward River's room Amy began to once more pelt the Doctor with questions.

"Doctor, what did she want to tell us?"

"Oh, it was just Timelordy stuff. Nothing important, really," quickly answered the Doctor without looking at Amy—another lie. They reached River's room, 324, and gently pushed open the door. The lights were dimmed and the room was cool. There was no one else in the room, but lying on the single bed was her. Her eyes were closed, allowing her long lashes to rest gently on her perfect cheeks. Her golden curls were splayed out on the pillow as the perfect backdrop for her beautiful face.

Slowly he stepped forward, ignoring anything and everything else. He felt a slight tingling in his fingers as he neared the bed and saw one of her arms was lying over the blanket. He reached forward and touched her hand ever so gently just to feel her soft skin to assure him that she was here and she was okay. Next he bent down to press his ear to both sides of her chest to hear her hearts beating steadily. On one side he could feel bandage through her hospital nightgown.

"My poor girl," murmured Amy, bringing the Doctor to his senses. He stopped back to let Amy and Rory look at their daughter. With a mother's touch Amy reached out and smoothed back her daughter's curls before placing a loving kiss on her forehead. Rory just stood slightly behind Amy looking strong and relieved at the same time.

"So, what do we do now?" inquired Amy, turning to the Doctor for direction as always.

"Now, we wait," he replied and took a seat in one of the chairs beside the bed. Rory took the other because Amy had planted herself firmly on the side of the bed, so she could hold River's hand. All of them had their eyes locked on River waiting for her to wake. And they didn't have long to wait. In less than ten minutes the curly haired Pond began to stir.

Sleepily she blinked open her stormy green eyes, fighting against her heavy eyelids, to see three loving faces staring down on her. A lazy smile pulled up the corners of her mouth and she sighed.

"This is a sight I've seen before," she managed to say, each word falling quietly from her mouth as she worked to say them. A relieved laugh tumbled out of Amy's mouth as she gave her daughter's hand a loving squeeze and a pleased smile broke out on the Doctor's face.

"Well, if you didn't go and get yourself in so much trouble all the time this wouldn't be such a common occurance," Amy teased. It was, in fact, a very familiar scenario. Here River was in a hospital bed with her mother and father looking down on her, the Doctor too, all waiting for her to gain consciousness. The walls were even blue like last time—the time she gave away all her regenerations to the man she had thought she was destined to kill. The only difference this time was….

She suddenly felt wide awake and worry poured into her mind as the thought occurred to her. She moved to push herself off the bed as her frantic eyes met the Doctor's. One of the machines began to beep wildly and she could feel a searing pain in her chest, but she ignored it. This was more important.

"River, no!" Amy tried to push River back down, but River was stronger and continued to sit up. It was the Doctor who managed to gently push her back down.

"Doctor?" she questioned helplessly as he stood over her. She knew he would understand what she was asking, and he did. He knew what had caused her to suddenly try to leap out of bed, but he couldn't say it. Amy and Rory didn't know yet. He tried to explain with only his eyes that everything was fine. _Everyone _was fine.

"Shhh, River," he murmured, cupping her cheek in his hand. He could see tears welling in her eyes, but before he could say anymore a nurse came bustling into the room.

"Is everything all right? I heard the machine's going off. Ah, our patient is awake."

"Everything's fine, fine, just a bit of waking-up-shock," answered the Doctor quickly. "Isn't that right, dear?" He turned to River for confirmation.

"Yeah, just catching my bearings," nodded River. "Mum, Dad, do you mind if I talk to the Doctor for a moment?" River's eyes looked from her mother to her father as she questioned this. They looked confused, but nodded agreement and got up to leave the room with the nurse. Once they were gone River's body relaxed and she sunk into the pillows allowing her eyes to close and a soft sigh to escape her mouth. Next to her she heard the Doctor pull one of the chairs right up to the bed and sit in it.

"They don't know yet, dear. They still don't know. I didn't say anything to them," he murmured to her.

"Rule one?" inquired River with a sly smile, which made the Doctor smile despite the circumstances.

"Rule one," he agreed.

"Is everything all right, then? The baby is…." her voice trailed off as her eyes opened and looked to him for confirmation.

"They said no harm came to the baby. We were able to revive you in time to keep any harm from happening," he answered with a small pat for her hand.

"What happened?"

"I don't know. I was going to ask you the same question. It all happened so fast" He twisted his fingers as he tried to remember the scene in the dark. That had been a new feeling for him—feeling helpless. He hadn't been able to do anything to protect River and that made him angry. He was dangerous when he was angry.

"I just remember something shooting and then I got hit and I tried to take it out before it got to you too," her words came slowly and her face was scrunched in concentration as she tried desperately to remember.

"Did you see what it was that shot you?" There was a trail of anger in the Doctor's voice as he asked his wife this. If he ever found out what had harmed her it would be sorry.

"No. It was so dark. Everything was dark. How did you find the Tardis?"

"She just called to me. She must have known we were in danger and she just sort of…pulled me in. I just ran blindly and managed to bump right into her."

"Good old Tardis," laughed River, "smarter than all of us."

"Good old Tardis," repeated the Doctor as he pictured not his blue box, but the woman whom the Tardis had once been during an adventure in the plughole of the universe. She never failed them.


	7. Silence In the Garden

**Okay my wonderful readers, here is the next chapter. I feel that the last one I posted really wasn't quite up to par, so I apologize for it and hope this one will make up for it. **

**I am giving a warning now that there are just a few innuendos in this chapter that you should be aware of, but really nothing severe, which is why I haven't changed the rating. If you think I need to up the rating let me know in a review. I do love reviews! Even if you don't think the rating should be changed leave me a review anyway because I adore them and they make my day, also the more reviews I get the faster I update the chapters!**

**Oh! And guess what! I have finally figured out the villains of the story...and let me tell you...it's absolutely brilliant and genius and trust me you won't be disappointed. You get just a hint of what is to come at the end of this chapter. Ooooh it will be great, so hang in there my dear readers**

**Happy reading.**

**Oh and I don't own Doctor Who.**

* * *

"You know, Doctor, this bandage is really uncomfortable, couldn't I just take it off now?" asked River in her most persuasive tone as she itched around the edges of the bandage taped to her chest. The Doctor, who had been about to get her a bowl of broth, hopped back to her side and grabbed her hands quickly to stop her.

"No, you can't," he replied firmly placing her hands at her sides, but not before putting a quick kiss on each. "Now, don't move. I'll be right back with something for you to eat." He gave her a smile then scurried away out the door to the kitchen of the Tardis, which he had recently just added on specifically to take care of his injured wife. Since she was not allowed to leave the bed for the week he couldn't take her to exotic planets for each meal, so a kitchen had been his only option.

River did as she was told and stayed in bed, but she did not look happy about it. Her arms were crossed and she looked around for something to keep her entertained. She had been released from the hospital after two days and had now been on the Tardis for three. At a total of five days sitting propped up on pillows doing nothing River was about to burst. She was not used to this and decided she was not in the least fond of it either.

She was very glad when the Doctor came tripping into the room with a tray in his hands, but her face fell when it was a bowl of broth and a plate of jammie dodgers. She sighed and sunk back into the pillows looking very much like a pouting child. The Doctor's face fell as he saw his outgoing and bold wife looking very much like a child who had just gotten sent to their room.

"I brought you some lunch," he offered, hoping it would cheer her, but she just looked at him and raised an eyebrow. She knew he was trying, but she couldn't handle being cooped up. He was just setting the tray of food down on the bedside table when River threw the blankets off her legs and moved to get up.

"No, no, no!" protested the Doctor trying to set down the soup to stop her, but his lanky limbs managed to spill it all over his shirt instead. He did an odd dance as he waved his hands in the air trying to cool down the hot liquid now burning his skin.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" he whined. River chuckled to herself as she gracefully got to her feet and walked around to the side of the bed where he was now trying to clumsily remove his jacket. He wasn't paying attention to her any longer, so he didn't see her come around behind him and slip the tweed off his shoulders. He jumped and gave a squeak at the light touch of her fingers and she laughed outright this time.

"A little jumpy, Sweetie?" she inquired smoothly as she reached up to untie the infernal bowtie. He gulped before answering, and River knew his face had to be beet read.

"Considering the recent circumstances I feel that being jumpy is a completely acceptable response to someone creeping up behind you and trying to steal your clothes," answered the Doctor quickly, stumbling over his words because he had been talking a bit too fast. The problem was he had a very large distraction pressing up against his back and she just happened to be his wife and she just happened to be unbuttoning his shirt.

"Oh, you think so, do you?" she asked in a whisper that brushed against and tickled his ear. He swatted at her, trying to get her away so he could focus.

"Why, yes, in fact, I do," he answered defiantly. Before he could say anymore River spun him around and planted a firm kiss on his lips as she slid the shirt over his shoulders. He reached up to put his hands on her shoulders and leaned into their kiss, but before he could River pulled away and laughed making him look very confused.

"You were having trouble getting those off; didn't want you to burn yourself," she informed him gesturing to his shirt and jacket on the floor. She then leaned in very close to his face with her nose touching his and murmured, "Now go put a shirt on." With that she pranced away out of reach and disappeared into the bathroom where she had been meaning to go all along.

"Melody Pond, you tease!" griped the Doctor as he scooped up his bowtie and jacket before heading for the closet where he had a few spare shirts hanging. The only response he got from behind the locked door of the bathroom was another playful laugh. When River returned the Doctor was fully dressed once more and in the process of tying his bowtie. She perched herself on the edge of the bed and watched him until he was finished.

"It's been three days, Doctor," she informed him as she began to itch at the bandage once more.

"Yes, it has, and you seem to have all your former spirit back already," he answered with a stern look at her. She stopped scratching and let her hand fall back into her lap.

"We promised Mum and Dad we'd check in after three days, so they could make sure you were looking after me properly." With that sentence River winked at him and he launched into a long-winded speech.

"I'm an excellent care-taker; very brilliant at it. I've taken care of loads of sick people. You could call me the Healer of the Sick—no, no don't do that. Nevermind. Scratch that. But still, look at you, you're healing up quite properly. I think I'm doing a fantastic…."

He was hushed by River's finger being placed over his lips.

"You are very brilliant, Doctor, but you know Mum will want proof." She moved to walk out of the door of the bedroom, but the Doctor caught her arm, being careful not to grab the one on the injured side of her body.

"I wouldn't suggest you going dressed like that," he replied, his voice a bit higher pitched than normal. River saw a perfect opportunity to tease and grabbed on with both hands.

"Oh? This isn't—appropriate for the folks?" she inquired, looking at him seductively as she swayed back and forth before him in the silk nightie she was wearing, which revealed quite a bit more of River than would be decent for public society. She had ditched the hospital gown as soon as she had reached the Tardis and traded it for a silky slip of lacey fabric which she argued was much more comfortable. However, the Doctor decided she wore it just to taunt him because she knew no—shenanigans could happen while she was injured. He slapped a hand over his eyes as he answered.

"River Song, you stop that right now and put on some proper clothes for heaven's sake," pleaded the Doctor.

"I can't," she replied cheekily as she stepped forward and removed his hand from his eyes.

"And why not?" he demanded in return as he kept his eyes on the ceiling and not on his scantily clad wife.

"I can't lift my arm. You have to help me," she answered slyly, and he rolled his eyes at her then quickly looked around for an escape.

"Ah ha! Here we go. This will do. Turn around, dear," he instructed as he noticed a soft dove grey robe flung over the back of a chair. It would have to do.

"Doctor," replied River with her eyebrows raised.

"Oh stop it, and come here," he ordered impatiently.

"Make me," she purred, but obeyed his wishes. As he slipped the robe over her shoulders she tied it and then turned to him.

"Well, Sweetie, shall we?" she asked then looped her arm through his. He gave her a bright smile and a nod then together they strode through the Tardis and back to the control room.

"Next stop, Pond's residence!" announced the Doctor happily as he threw up a lever and pushed an array of buttons. On the other side of the console River quickly twisted a knob and typed in something before the Doctor could notice. He leaned around the console and eyed her suspiciously.

"Did you touch something?" he asked.

"No, no, just watching," she replied quickly putting her hands innocently in the air. He squinted his eyes at her for a second then continued to drive, and she continued to correct until the Tardis gave its jerky landing and made the brake noise as usual. River rolled her eyes at the Doctor's glee then together they exited the Tardis.

It was dark out and the moon was high in the sky. River decided it was very late. She knew her parent's would not forgive her and the Doctor quickly for waking them up in the middle of the night, but they would have to get over it. They had landed the Tardis in the back garden only a few yards from the back door. River was already beginning to feel worn out from the walking she had been doing, but she figured she could make it the rest of the way.

"Come on, Doctor," she encouraged as she took a step toward the back door, but the Doctor didn't move. He seemed to be listening intently to something. When she tried to ask what he was doing he shushed her and continued to listen.

"Did you hear that?" he finally asked, turning to River. She opened her mouth to answer, but she stopped when she saw the Doctor's eyes grow wide with fear and his face contort with anger.

"River, please tell me you have your blaster," he murmured as he crept toward her. She looked at him in confusion, but pulled it quickly out of her pocket and took a step toward him.

"Never go anywhere without it, my love," she answered with a cheeky smile.

"Then would you be a dear and get rid of the infernal things standing behind you?" asked the Doctor as he whipped out his sonic, hoping it could be of use. River spun around to find three Silence materializing from the shadows behind her. Her mouth fell open and panic raced through her. She remembered now. How could she have forgotten? Now she understood why she had been so afraid when she found out she was pregnant.

"Doctor?" she made his name a question as she felt him press up against her. They were back to back as they each stood pointing their weapons at the creatures surrounding them.

"Don't take your eyes off of them, River, or you will forget. Kill them," instructed the Doctor calmly.

_Doctor._ The creatures were only able to say that one word before River's blaster was lighting up the night sky and the sound of the sonic echoed around the garden. They danced around the garden, back to back so that the Silence were never out of their sight. River could feel the fatigue of her injury and of pregnancy weighing down on her, but she continued to leap and lunge, shooting all the silence with the ferocity of a mother protecting her baby.

The scene was over quickly—much more quickly than either the Doctor or River had expected. It almost seemed as if it had been too easy, but River was not complaining. She stood swaying on her feet as the sudden exertion took its toll on her. With drooping eyes she let herself sink to the ground where she sat holding her blaster loosely in her hand—just in case.

Nearby the Doctor was standing and slightly panting as he tucked his sonic back into his jacket. He looked around and wondered what had just happened. The Silence were supposed to be dead. They weren't supposed to exist anymore. He couldn't understand. He turned to see River sitting on the ground looking very exhausted. He moved to her, but froze when light flooded into the yard.

"Oi! What's going on out here?" a familiar Scottish voice filled the night air and both River and the Doctor looked up to see Amy standing in the doorway of the house dressed in her nightie and looking very cross.

"Uh—it's complicated?" offered the Doctor looking a bit nervous about the glare on Amy's face.


	8. Needing Your Mum

**Hello beautiful readers! Here is the next chapter for you. It's not very action-y packed, but it's extremely cute and I am quite fond of it. I just had this image in my head and I couldn't resist. It's the end of this that I love, so here is this chapter. It's plot-useful though, too, so the fluff is productive!**

**Please, please, please leave reviews everyone. I know what I think of the chapters, but I need to know what you all think! Reviews are very appreciated and make me want to write more! The more reviews I get the faster the next chapter will go up, so leave one please!**

**I don't own Doctor Who. How sad, right?**

**Allons-y!**

* * *

"Don't you even try to pull the 'it's complicated' card on me, Doctor. The two of you get in this house right now and explain to me what is going on. And you particularly better explain to me why you let my daughter get so tired she had to sit down in the middle of my lawn at 2am. I know you were fighting aliens or something. I can see the blaster in her hand," Amy sounded very threatening as she said this and it made the Doctor a little nervous.

"Oh, mum," laughed River in a tired voice as she looked up at her mother with one of her very Riverish smiles on her face. Amy sighed and walked down the steps and across the lawn to her daughter as the Doctor did the same thing.

"Come on, dear, up you get," said the Doctor as he and Amy helped River to her feet. The blaster was tucked away safely into the pocket of River's robe and the three of them headed into the house. Just as he was closing the door the Doctor did a quick scan of the yard to try to figure out what exactly he was going to explain to Amy. He couldn't remember what he and River had been doing before Amy had begun scolding them. As soon as he had this Pond situation sorted out he would go back to the Tardis and try to figure out what had happened. He suspected the Silence. It was the only explanation as to why he wouldn't be able to remember.

Once in the house they made their way to the living room. On the way they met a very drowsy Rory in the hall. He was barefoot and in his pajamas like Amy, and his hair was very disheveled.

"Are we having a pajama party that I wasn't informed of?" he asked groggily as he accompanied them to the living room where River was deposited on a couch and everyone else took seats. Amy insisted on taking the spot next to her tired daughter.

"Yeah, Rory, only—apparently the Doctor didn't get the memo," teased Amy as she looked disapprovingly at the Doctor's attire.

"Oh, hush, Pond," muttered the Doctor as he adjusted all the couch pillows so they were surrounding him. He sank into them and gave a contented sigh.

"Couches are lovely. I should get a couch—a really bouncy one with lots of pillows…" the Doctor began to ramble, but Amy was quick to cut him off. She wanted to know what had happened, and she was not about to wait ten minutes for the Doctor to finish talking about nothing. She had a hunch he was stalling.

"Doctor, what happened out there?" Amy pressed impatiently.

"Well, we were on our way to your house when we sort of got ambushed," he answered bluntly. "I was bringing your daughter by so you could check up on us to make sure she was getting better and all that." At this Amy turned to River who gave her mum a small smile.

"Has he been taking care of you properly? If not you know you can stay here until you're better or Rory and…"

"He's doing fine, mum. He's doing more harm to himself than me, really. This morning he poured a hot bowl of soup all down his front," answered River mischievously.

"You're not supposed to tell them that," moaned the Doctor as he looked at River with a pout.

"Well, Sweetie, it is the truth. And how funny it was!"

"Oh, I bet it was!" laughed Amy. The three Ponds had a good laugh at the Doctor's expense before he cleared his throat impatiently, eager to get on with talk of aliens rather than this teasing.

"As I was saying, we were ambushed in your garden by….by Silence." Amy and Rory's eyes widened and they looked at him and River disbelievingly.

"But I thought…." Rory's voice trailed off as his eyes wandered to one of the windows and squinted out as if he was expecting to see a Silence peeking in through the glass. Not that he would remember. He couldn't even remember what they looked like. None of them could.

"How do you remember them, Doctor?" was the next question from Amy.

"I don't. I don't remember the ambush at all, but I did this," he showed Amy the back of his hand where there were nine tick marks, "and River had her blaster out, so I assumed we were killing off the creatures we couldn't remember—the Silence."

"Yeah, that's what we did in America," recollected Rory as he nodded and pointed toward the marks on the Doctor's hand.

"Yep. And we're going to do it now too. Any time you see one of the creatures make a mark on your skin just like last time. I don't think you and Rory should have any trouble with them. It seems they're after me, so that's good for you at least," the Doctor said as he reached deep into one of his jacket pockets and pulled out markers for each of them.

"Right, so if they're after you, River should stay here with us. She'll be safer," announced Amy decisively making both the Doctor and River's heads turn sharply to Amy.

"No!" protested the Doctor.

"Yes. She's injured. Look at what happened tonight. She nearly passed out on my lawn because the Silence were there for you. She needs to rest—not to be running around shooting aliens in her nightie," insisted Amy.

"Mum…." River began to say, but stopped when her face suddenly turned very pale. She leapt off the couch and raced out of the room, nearly stumbling on the coffee table on her way out.

"River?" Amy called after her daughter worriedly as the Doctor jumped to his feet. The three of them shared a very confused glance before running after River. They wouldn't have known where she'd run off to if a horrible retching noise hadn't been coming from be bathroom.

"You two stay here," Amy ordered the Doctor and Rory.

"But…." began the Doctor.

"No buts." Amy then disappeared into the bathroom to find River on the floor with her head over the toilet looking very ill.

"River, are you okay?" Amy asked as she walked to her daughter and kneeled down next to her.

"Yeah, mum, I'm…." River began to say, but stopped as she leaned over the toilet again. Amy gave her daughter a sympathetic look as she scooted forward and brushed back the mass of golden and wild curls, so they wouldn't get in the way.

"Thanks," River breathed when she resurfaced. She wiped her face and closed her eyes.

"It's the—medicine they gave me at the hospital. They said it could cause nausea," murmured River in an explanation for her being ill. It wasn't the truth, of course. There was a very different reason for her nausea, but she couldn't tell her mother that yet. It was still too soon.

"Oh, my poor girl. Come here," Amy moved so her back was up against the bathtub and she opened her arms in an invitation for River to sit next to her. River looked at her skeptically for just a second, but eventually obeyed. She sat next to her mother and allowed Amy to wrap her pale arms around her shoulders. River's eyes closed as she laid her head on her mother's shoulder. Amy began to rub her daughter's forehead and River did not protest.

Outside the door the Doctor was prancing back and forth impatiently, wondering if his wife was all right. Finally he couldn't bear it any longer and he pulled open the bathroom door and poked his head in. He was a little shocked at the scene before him. River and Amy sitting on the floor together and River curled up at her mother's side.

"Um—is everything going all right?" he asked uncertainly.

"Go away, Sweetie," River ordered in a very non-demanding tone. All around she looked just a tad pathetic and that was not something the Doctor was used to. Sassy and defiant River was now being coddled by her mum. That was not something you'd see every day. The Doctor turned his gaze to Amy and lifted an eyebrow in a silent question.

"She may be a fully grown woman and she may be older than me, but when you're sick everyone needs their mum," was Amy's firm answer, "now shoo." The Doctor withdrew his head from the bathroom and shut the door. He turned to Rory and looked around awkwardly.

"Well, it seems things in there are under control," he said after a moment and began to rock back and forth on the balls of his feet.

"Uh—want to watch football?" Rory asked in an attempt to find something else to do other than stare stupidly at each other. The Doctor's face lit up at this.

"I love football!" Rory's shoulder's relaxed in relief and he led the way back to the living room where the two men plopped down on the couches to watch football.


	9. Growing

******Hello everyone! So sorry for not updating yesterday, but I had no inspiration, so I decided to wait instead of trying and ending up giving you a rubbish chapter. I know this one isn't the best in the story either, but it was needed. Hang in there; though, soon fun and action-y things will ensue!**

**Leave a review telling me what you thought. The more reviews the faster the next chapter goes up! And I know what is happening in the next one! ;) I hope you all enjoy and I send a huge thanks to all the people who are following and reviewing this story!**

**I don't own Doctor Who. No matter how much I whine about it.**

**Happy reading!**

* * *

It didn't take long for the two Pond women to fall fast asleep on the bathroom floor. Even Rory slumped over on the couch in a deep slumber halfway through the football match leaving the Doctor up all alone. For a while he sat merely watching football, but soon his mind began to wander to other things—more interesting and fun things. He peeked at his watch and saw it was only four in the morning, which meant it was too early to wake anyone. Carefully he crept out of the living room, out the back door, and into the safety of his Tardis.

Just as he was about to pull down the lever sending him into the time vortex there came a stern knock at the doors. He looked at them a bit nervously wondering which of the Ponds he had woken. Slowly he abandoned the console and tip toed to the doors. Slowly he reached out and pulled them open to reveal River Song standing with her hands on her hips looking a bit tired and very amused.

"Oh, hello," he greeted as he looked around nervously.

"And what exactly was it that you were planning on doing?" she questioned with mock sternness as she stepped into the Tardis.

"Oh, you know, just go visit another planet while you all were sleeping," he replied, trying to sound conversational to avoid getting himself in trouble.

"And you were going to leave me behind?" His wife raised an eyebrow in his direction.

"I got bored!" he replied defensively. Then he realized she was teasing and wagged a finger at her. "That's not nice."

"Who said I was nice?" asked River as she leaned around the console from where she had begun to launch the Tardis into the vortex.

"Oh, you bad, bad girl," he chided in jest.

"You would know." She winked at him, sending a bright pink blush flooding into his face then returned to her driving. The Doctor jerked about nervously on his side of the console as he recovered from his embarrassment. That woman could always make him blush.

"So, where are we off to now, dear?" he asked once his cheeks had returned to their proper shade.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll be off to make mischief somewhere, and I'll do my best at it back at Stormcage." The Doctor froze halfway through a hop at River's last word.

"Stormcage?" he faltered as he looked at her with a very prominent dislike for the statement she'd just made showing all over his face.

"But—but River….."

"That's the rules, Doctor. You steal me away for a while, but eventually I do have to go back. I've got a promise to live up to, you know, honey," she replied.

"Well, I don't like it," he muttered crossing his arms stubbornly like a child. "You haven't healed properly, and you're carrying our baby. How can I just leave you?"

"That just means you'll be all the quicker at coming back to get me," she answered playfully.

"What about Amy and Rory? We can't just leave them. We ought to go back and tell them goodbye." The Doctor began punching in things on the console to try to reverse River's driving, but she quickly fixed it each time.

"They don't want me to stay with you, Doctor, remember? Mum thinks it's too dangerous since I'm 'injured.' If we go back they'll try to convince me to stay and you know very well that I can't…" her voice trailed off as she looked down at her stomach then back up at her husband.

"Yeah, you're right. Well, fine, I guess I'll take you back to Stormcage, but I'm not happy about it," he finally relented.

"We're already here."

"Why do you always make the landy noise go away? It's a beautiful noise! I love it!" asked a grumpy Doctor. River rolled her eyes at him as she headed for the Tardis doors with the Doctor quick on her heels.

"Because I think it's an awful noise," she answered as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Now come back for me soon, Sweetie." She sealed her statement with a kiss, which the Doctor didn't protest to at all.

"Oh, you know I will. Now off you go, I guess. Try not to get into too much trouble."

"I'll try not to, but it just seems to find me wherever I am!" The doors closed on River laughing and the Doctor stood for a moment staring at them. He always hated leaving her at the awful prison, but now it felt even worse because she was injured and she was pregnant.

Slowly and slightly forlornly he hobbled back to the console where he typed in the coordinates for a museum in the late 79th century. He spent the next two days wandering around museums at different points in time seeing how well the historians got the facts straight. After day two he nearly sprinted back to the Tardis in his excitement to get to see River again, knocking over a very prized vase discovered in a long lost tomb on Mars 7.

He really did sprint back to the Tardis after that because a team of very angry museum guards were after him. He skidded to a halt in front of the doors to his beloved police box and fumbled to get it open. The guards were swarming around him and yelling very angry things.

"Yes, I know I broke it! I'm sorry—but it wasn't the real one anyway. I may or may not have been given the real one as a bribe to stay off that planet….but that's not important. You see, I need to go and pick up my wife. I promised her I'd be getting her soon, so I best just be on my way," the Doctor said very loudly to try to be heard over the guards.

"I'm sorry, sir, we can't let you leave. We need to take you to the director of the museum," one of the guards standing before him announced.

"Oh, well that's a pity. I'm too busy with thing in my police telephone box. How about I just step inside and you bring the director here and we can talk," suggested the Doctor brightly as he slowly began pushing to door to the Tardis open.

"Sir, do not step inside that—box."

"Too late!" the Doctor smiled impishly at them then zoomed into the Tardis before he could be caught. He was up at the console in no time zipping about as he flew her right back to Stormcage.

"Here we come, River," he shouted happily as the Tardis landed with the beautiful landy noise and everything. He bounded out of her and skidded to a halt before the doors of River's cell. She was sitting there placidly mending one of her shirts with a bit of thread and a needle. When she heard is clumsy footsteps she looked up and smiled. When the Doctor saw her face he immediately knew it had been more than two days for her.

"Hello," he blundered, already getting angry at himself for being late—again.

"Hello, Sweetie," she greeted, setting down the shirt she had been sewing to come stand at the bars of the cell.

"Where are we?" he asked a bit sadly.

"I'll show you," she replied with glee bubbling through her words. She reached out and took his hand to place it on her stomach. His mouth fell open as his hand made contact with the fabric of her shirt. Underneath he could feel just a slight curve of her belly, but it wasn't the natural curve of her stomach. No, it was their baby growing inside her. He looked up at her in wonder and blinked disbelievingly.

"No….."

"Yes, our baby is growing, my love," purred River with such joy in her face and voice, "I'm almost three months along now and so far everything seems to be going well." Relief shining in her eyes accompanied this statement.

"That's so brilliant! But—it's only been two days for me. You weren't even seven months along when I left you here last," the Doctor's face began to get the pouty quality it got when he was disappointed.

"Don't worry. You didn't see me, but I saw you. You won't miss anything, honey, I promise. Now, where are we off to today?" she inquired as the sound of footsteps reached her ears.

"Barcelona? That's a fun planet, or we could go to the planet of the ice mountains. There is a lot of fun ice skating and skiing there. You can get a really mean cup of hot chocolate—and I literally mean cruel. Every time it insults my nose, no matter what face I have. I love my nose….Oh! What about the planet of the oceans. There is literally no land anywhere on the planet. Talk about beautiful mermaids—and the seafood cuisine there—well, it's horrid. They can't make fire you see, so they can't cook anything. The sushi is divine though, but steer clear of the tofu. It's bad for digestion…." The Doctor rambled on about all the places he could take River, but was suddenly shushed by her finger on his lips.

"Sweetie, the guards are coming and they are really starting to dislike you, so we should probably get into the Tardis and decide there," she suggested and he nodded in agreement. As she removed her finger from his lips he whipped out the sonic and opened the door of the cell making the alarms blare obnoxiously around them. Grabbing River's hand they ran to the Tardis just as the guards were sprinting around the corner.

"It's you again! Stop right there!" the leading guard shouted. In the doorway of the Tardis the Doctor paused, waved and smiled brightly at the guards, then pulled his head inside and securely closed the doors.

"They really don't like me at all, do they?" he asked, not exactly sounding upset about the matter.

"Not even a little bit," River chuckled as she began walking toward one of the hallways to a different part of the Tardis.

"Where are you going?" inquired the Doctor as he watched her go. She hadn't even insisted on driving yet. He loved to argue about the driving….

"To get out of these horrid clothes," she informed him before disappearing.

"So, where do you want to go?" He spoke loud enough for her to hear him in the other room where she was changing out of her grungy prison clothes into her traditional green dress and leather belt. This would be one of the last times she got to wear it because it was already getting too tight.

"Oh, I don't know. Darillium sounds nice. It was so pretty, the bit I got a glimpse at and you did say we were going there in my future. It's my future now. Can we go?" her head poked around the doorframe to look at him.

"No! It's not time yet. Stop asking. We aren't going to Darillium!" growled the Doctor trying not to let all the anger he was feeling show through his voice or his face. He did come off quite firm, so River abandoned the issue without argument.

"I think we should go pick up the Ponds. They always make things more interesting and I'm sure your mum would be glad to have a go at me like usual. Probably comment on my bowtie….bowties are cool," the last bit he mumbled to himself as he proudly adjusted his bowtie.

"We could do that, but there is one problem with that scenario, Doctor—they don't know yet," River reminded his as she strode back into the console room fully dressed with her blaster strapped to its customary place on her hip.

"Oh, yeah, right, well, I think it's time Amelia and Roranicus found out they're going to be grandparents," he proclaimed with a wink for his wife.

"I can't wait to see mum's face." This sentence was all the permission the Doctor needed to send the Tardis in flight for Leadworth.


	10. A Bumpy Ride

**Hello my lovely readers! Thank you so much for the continued support! It really has amazed me how much this story has peaked your interest! I hope in continues to live up to your expectations!**

**I'm sorry I haven't posted an updated for two days. I've had to work in the morning both days and for the next week I'll be moving into college, so my updates will be sporadic, but I will do my best to get one up every day. Starting next Saturday they should become regular again.**

**Please leave a review telling me what you think! The more I get the more motivated I'll be to get on and get a review up every day despite my busy schedule ahead of me!**

**I don't own Doctor Who...yet. (;**

**Allons-y!**

* * *

"River, maybe we should go back to the Tardis. I think it's too early to tell the Ponds. Come on, let's just go." The Doctor was a bundle of nerves as he and River stood on the doorstep of her parents' home waiting to be invited in. He was hopping from foot to foot, twisting his fingers nervously.

"They'll need to know eventually. Soon I'll be showing, then what will we tell them?" inquired River as she watched her Doctor out of the corner of her eyes with amusement flickering merrily in them.

"Yeah, you're right, but your mum!" moaned the Doctor as he imagined Amy's reaction. He didn't have long to wait because seconds later the door was flung open by the very enthusiastic red-head with her husband standing just behind her.

"Hello," River greeted, careful not to call them mum and dad until she was sure where they were in their timelines.

"It's been almost a year since you disappeared out of our living room. Where have you been? I've been so worried!" scolded Amy with accusation in her eyes pointed straight at the Doctor. Her daughter could do no wrong, but she could get angry at him. He flinched at her fiery gaze.

"Well, you see….." he stopped and gulped, unable to come up with an appropriate excused, so he turned his eyes pleadingly to River in hopes she could smooth things over.

"Mum, Dad, I have something I want to talk to you…."

"Melody Pond, what is in your stomach!" River was interrupted by the squeal of her mother as her eyes grew very large and stared at River's stomach. "Doctor, what did you do to my daughter?"

"Um….." The Doctor's mouth fell open as Amy lunged forward. He ducked quickly and squeezed his eyes shut waiting for the oncoming blow, but it didn't come. After a few seconds he slowly opened an eye to find River locked tightly in her mother's embrace. Laughter was falling lightly from his wife's lips and she was holding her mother just as tightly as Amy was holding her.

"I'm pregnant, Mum," River sighed with such happiness in her voice.

"That's brilliant, River. Oh my gosh, congratulations! You both must be so happy," Amy's words came out in a rush as she released her daughter and turned her overjoyed expression on the Doctor who had fully straightened up by this point and pretended nothing had happened.

"You're going to be a dad," she said in a rather high pitched squeak before throwing herself at him. He caught her and held her in a tight embrace, both of them laughing and smiling like idiots.

"You're going to have a baby!" Rory said happily as he stepped forward to claim his turn at congratulating his daughter. She gave him a good squeeze and nodded.

"How far along are you?" Amy demanded once she had released the Doctor and collected her composure.

"Just about three months now," answered River as Rory led the way inside into the sitting room.

"Looks about right. You're only showing a tiny bit. Ah, I can't believe it. You're growing a little Doctor in there," giggled Amy as she placed a hand on her daughter's stomach with wonder clear on her face.

"It is hard to believe. It's still setting in for me, and I've been carrying the baby for three months. And trust me—I've felt the side effects." The memory of the last time she was at her parents' house flooded into her mind. The morning sickness had not worn off yet, and she was still prone to bouts of sickness and waves of weariness, but she was convinced it would all be worth it.

"So, when was the last time you saw us?" asked Amy as she moved toward the kitchen to make tea and get out the jammie dodgers she always kept on hand for the Doctor.

"Do you remember the bathroom floor night?" inquired River with an eyebrow raised playfully in her mother's direction.

"I knew it! That means you were pregnant the last time you were here. I'd suspected it and I was right!" exclaimed Amy very triumphantly.

"How could you possibly have known that?" questioned the Doctor before stuffing two jammie dodgers into his mouth at once.

"Woman's intuition," Amy winked at River before turning to fill up the kettle.

"That can't possibly be a real thing…?" The Doctor turned to Rory questioningly.

"I have no idea, but you'd be braver than me if you tried to argue with her about it," replied the sandy haired man as he took a seat at the table next to River.

"A fat lot of help you are, Rory the Roman. Not so tough without your sword, eh?"

"Hey, no taking blows at him!" reprimanded Amy turning sharply on the Doctor.

"Goodness, is it scold the Doctor day? Next, River will critique my driving when I take you to a planet where the clouds are actually cotton candy to celebrate," pouted the Doctor as he took to his jammie dodgers for consolation.

"I always critique your driving, but you know you love it," she murmured as she pecked his cheek. He pretended to be cross, but River smiled gleefully as she saw the corners of his mouth fighting to stay in their frown due to the smile that was creeping its way onto his face.

"All right, all right, let's not get all mushy and romancy and stuff. How about that planet, yeah?" piped up Amy as she saw the warning signs beginning to pop up as the Doctor and River looked lovingly at each other. She really didn't feel like watching her best friend and her daughter be all lovey-dovey today. It was just weird.

"Oh, of course! Come along Pond!" The Doctor was on his feet in an instant dragging Amy along behind. River made sure the stove was safely off before following along with her father at her side, both of them looking very entertained.

"Have you gone to a doctor about the baby yet? And I don't mean him." Rory asked as they made their way out of the house and locked the door.

"No, there isn't anyone to see. Who is going to know anything about a Timelord baby?" asked River. A swift look of worry floated across her face, but it came and went so quickly her father didn't notice.

"How are you going to know if the baby is doing okay?" he asked, now worry poking through the tones of his voice.

"We won't until it's born," she sighed, averting her eyes from her father. A brooding look burned in her eyes for a moment before the chipper smile hopped its way back onto her face.

"But I'm a healthy woman, and the Doctor will keep me out of most of my mischief for the duration of the pregnancy. It's very likely I'll give birth to a very healthy little baby," she announced brightly.

"Are you two coming?" The Doctor's head poked out of the Tardis where he and Amy were already waiting. He looked very impatient to be off.

"You're going to have to get used to me being slow, my love. It's only going to get worse as I grow bigger," called back River teasingly. The Doctor squinted his eyes at her, but didn't say anything before disappearing back into the Tardis.

"He's going to be the death of me," she laughed as she led her father into the treasured time machine. Inside the Doctor was already doing his traditional dance around the console as he plotted the coordinates for their next landing.

"Here we go!" The Tardis jerked into flight sending all the passengers sliding across the glass floor. The Doctor laughed joyously and River watched him with deep amusement as she clung to the console to keep her balance.

"Isn't she a bit more—unstable than usual?" asked Amy, sounding a bit uncertain from where she gripped to the rail for support.

"Oh, she does that sometimes," hollered the Doctor. He didn't seem phased at all by the strangely loud sounds his old girl was making as she shook and threw them about rather violently.

"What did you do?" demanded River and rolled her eyes before scanning the console to see how to fix the problem.

"I didn't do anything! Why do you always think I've done something wrong? I'm a brilliant driver!"

"Did you use the stabilizers?"

"They're the blue boringers!"

"I don't care what they're called! Use them!"

"You can't make me!"

"Doctor!" At this last shout from River the Tardis landed, but it felt like she'd crashed. Everyone except River ended up on the floor. Amy did not look the least bit happy about it, and Rory stood up rubbing his elbows on which he'd landed rather painfully.

"Doctor, what is through those doors?" asked River cautiously.

"The planet with the cotton candy clouds and the pink lemonade rivers," he informed her with not even a hint of doubt showing on his face. River brushed her hand over the handle of her blaster as she took a few steps toward the Tardis doors.

"Sweetie, something went wrong with that flight and you know it. Are you sure that is what is through those doors?" she pressed as the blaster was removed from its holster.

"Of course not, but what are we supposed to do? If we're in the wrong place what's stopping us from going to another incorrect location if we try to fly her again? We need to go out and try to figure out what happened," replied the Doctor in exasperation. "I was trying to be optimistic; however, by hoping what was outside those doors was what is expected—delicious edible clouds."

"Well, what are we waiting for? It's either now or never," sighed Rory, stepping forward and pulling open the Tardis doors.

"Uh, Doctor?" came Amy's nervous voice.


	11. The Silence in the Capture

******Hello dearest readers! I know it has been quite some time since I updated and I deeply, deeply apologize, but I just moved into college, so my life has been REALLY hectic trying to get settled and whatnot. Here is the next chapter. I hope it does not disappoint. I will get at least one more up this week and more if I get a lovely response of reviews from you all!**

**This is a pretty intense chapter and I would love to hear what you think whether it stayed true to the characters or not! Please, please, please review! They make my day! In fact, a review I got this evening is what inspired me to update, you see the power you all hold in your hands? Review!**

**I hope you enjoy this! Allons-y!**

* * *

"Doctor, that is not a planet with cotton candy clouds," Amy announced as she threw open the doors of the Tardis to reveal a much less cheery exterior than what the inhabitants of the time machine were expecting.

"No, no it is not," murmured Rory as his eyes raked across the gloomy landscape. The ground was covered in greyish dirt and wilted, pathetic plants which didn't appear to have the will to live. Thick fog rolled over the ground making it impossible to see more than two hundred feet ahead. Ascending formidably from the depressing fog were thin trees covered in black bark. They rose high into the sky, their leafless branches stretching toward the steely grey atmosphere and tangling together to create a cage between the Doctor and his companions and the sky. The air was chilled and damp as if it would downpour at any second. Amy pulled her jacket more closely around herself to try to keep out the cold drifting into the interior of the Tardis.

"River, what does your computer say? I'm getting nothing from the Tardis. She keeps trying to search for our location, but she's having trouble honing in," questioned the Doctor from where he stood at the scanner.

"Let me go outside and I'll see what I can find out," replied River, rolling her eyes in a very annoyed fashion. As she stepped outside of the Tardis she pulled her handheld computer out of its pouch on her hip and began scanning the landscape to pinpoint their location.

"We are in the Hol galaxy in the 134th century, but my computer can't identify the planet—it's almost as if it hasn't been discovered yet," River informed the Doctor in a raised voice so he could hear her from where he still stood at the console. "But that can't be possible. I got this software much later on when the entire universe had been discovered and mapped out."

"Anything is possible," replied the Doctor as he strutted down to where River stood with a very thrilled expression on his young looking face.

"Doctor, you don't really think…."

"Oh, but I do, River. We discovered a planet," he nearly squealed like a child as he threw his arms out and his head back. "An entirely new planet where no one has ever, ever been!"

"At least no one who survived to tell the tale," muttered River and tucked her computer back into its pouch.

"What do you mean?" demanded Amy whom River had not intended to hear her last statement.

"I just mean—look around. It's not exactly the friendliest atmosphere I've ever seen. There's bound to be something unfriendly lurking nearby. If it has remained undiscovered there must be a reason," River explained with no sugar coating for her mother. She knew her mum would want the straight on truth and not some watered down version to make her feel less afraid.

"Doctor, why did we even end up here in the first place?" was Amy's next question. They were all standing in the doorway of the Tardis now and Rory had his arms wrapped tightly around his wife in an attempt to keep her warm.

"I don't know. Did anybody touch anything?" The Doctor looked around slowly at everyone with an accusing glint in his eye. He rested it a second longer on River who raised an eyebrow at him, making him look away.

"Of course not, Doctor. Why was the Tardis making that noise? It almost sounded like it did that time I got stuck in the time loop," piped up Amy from where she was nestled deep in her husband's arms.

"No, no, it can't be anything like that. When that happened someone had-oh. Oh!" Understanding flashed onto the Doctor's face and his lips stayed in their distinct O-shape as he slowly turned on the spot looking around at their location.

"Oh, what, Doctor?" demanded Amy, while River and Rory looked on with expressions as intense as Amy's question.

"When Amy got caught up in a temporal time loop someone was keeping my Tardis from landing. Basically someone had taken control of it. It's making the same sound-someone had control of my Tardis just now. Someone wanted us to end up here," he replied in a hushed tone as he took a step closer to his companions and more importantly closer to his wife.

"You said 'had control of your Tardis.' They don't anymore?" asked River and he doted on her a proud smile before answering. He loved that she always asked the right questions.

"No, not anymore. She's too smart for that, but they'll be getting better at it, I'm sure, so it won't be long now before they could do it again. There's no use trying to fly her until we know what is going on."

"And how do we do that?" hesitantly asked Rory. He wasn't quite sure whether he actually wanted to know the answer or not.

"We find out why we were brought here," answered the Doctor with an accompanying impish smile from River. Rory rolled his eyes and Amy giggled.

"Even when we are in grave danger you can't help but enjoy this, can you?" questioned Rory now sounding exasperated.

"I'm not saying anything," replied the Doctor, but he didn't need to because the look on his face said it all and it was mirrored on River. They lived for these moments. Silently River hoped their child would grow up loving their adventures as much as she and her husband did. She placed a loving hand on her stomach and sighed. This was a new adventure she was going to embark on-motherhood, but she was sure it would be the most interesting one yet.

"All right, then, shall we get going?" she asked brightly, pulling herself away from her sentimental thoughts and pulling out her blaster with more enjoyment than she probably should have, but she got no disapproving looks about it from the Doctor. She knew it was because he thought it was sexy when she carried her gun.

"Forward, march!" ordered the Doctor and armed with his sonic screwdriver he began to lead the pack. As they tramped through the dense fog a stream of giggle kept erupting from Amy's mouth because the Doctor was quite literally marching along as he hummed an army tune to himself.

"Doctor, shouldn't we be trying to….um….tone it down a bit. I mean, you're making a racket. The whole planet probably knows we're here by now," suggested Rory, glancing around nervously.

"Of course they do, Rory, but it's not because I'm making a ruckus. They brought us here, so they're obviously going to know when we arrive. There's no point in trying to hide. I'm going with the front door approach on this one, Roman Boy," announced the Doctor as he continued with his absurd marching, much to Amy's enjoyment.

"Roman Boy?" mouthed Rory to Amy only making her laugh harder.

"Doctor, I don't know if the front door approach was the best idea on this one," declared River as she pointed her blaster at something to her right. The Doctor spun around quickly and stared worriedly at her.

"Why do you say that?" he demanded as she lowered her blaster. She gave her head a small shake as if to fend off a muddled thought before answering him.

"I didn't say anything, Sweetie," she replied and raised an eyebrow at him. "It must have been Amy. Did you say something, Mum?" River turned her eyes curiously on her mother.

"No, River, it was you. You said 'Doctor, I don't know if the front door approach was the best idea on this one,'" mimicked Amy slowly as she eyed her daughter questionably.

"No, I didn't. I didn't say anything. What are you talking about?" there was a breath of hysteria in River's voice as she pressed her family to understand what they were talking about. She glanced around her, but saw nothing. Why would she say that?

"You don't remember," stated the Doctor calmly as he stepped forward and inspected River intensely making her feel slightly on edge.

"Doctor….." came Amy's voice from behind him high pitched and panicky.

"Yes, I know," he muttered as he peered over River's shoulder.

"If I can't remember-that means…"

"They're here," finished the Doctor. In response to his statement a scream burst out behind him. He and River whipped around to find Amy and Rory in the grasp of beings all four of them wished to never see again.

"Doctor! Doctor, help us!" came a familiar plea from the lips of Amy as he watched her being dragged off in the arms of one of the Silence. There was an entire horde of them lurking in the fog hissing and raising their hands into a defensive position, ready to release their electricity at any second.

"Amy!" he shouted back desperately as he raced after them. He watched as the Pond couple struggled against their captors as they were drug away, but they made no progress of getting free. The Silence were too strong. The Doctor was in hot pursuit of them with his sonic raised in hopes it would help him free his friends until the thought of River surged into his mind. Suddenly he skidded to a halt and spun back around to find her right on his heels wearing a determined look with her blaster raised. Relief flooded through him as he laid eyes on her. A plan quickly began to form in his mind. Before she could speak his hand closed around her wrist and he began dragging her toward the Tardis.

"Doctor! What are you doing? We have to go after them!" she protested violently as he pulled her along. He did his best to ignore her frantic struggle to free herself and go after her parents, but tears were stinging the corners of his eyes as he deliberately turned his back on two of the people dearest to his hearts. River fought against him, but to no avail. He would not let her go, but kept moving toward the Tardis. He knew if there was any chance of saving her parents she and he had to get out of there immediately.

"River, we have to go! It's the Silence, you know we won't win!" he tried to reason with her, but she ignored him and continued fighting to free her wrist from his grip. Until now she had never realized how strong he was.

"We can't just leave them!" hissed River as she clawed desperately at his hand to be freed.

"Amy! I will find you! We will come back for you, I swear it! Remember, I always come back!" shouted the Doctor over his shoulder as Amy and Rory disappeared from his sight. He felt as if both his hearts had sunk into his stomach when they were gone, but he had to keep River safe. This had been a trap and he knew if they stayed any longer there would be no way of getting out of it. Once they reached the Tardis the Doctor pushed River inside as gently as he could then dead-locked the door so she couldn't get out.

He moved to the console where he stood leaning over it, but River did not follow. She stayed at the doors beating against them and firing her blaster at them hopelessly. Angry tears were racing down her cheeks as she shouted profanity at the locked doors and the Doctor in turn. After a long while she ceased her fit and just stood weeping, the hand holding her blaster hung limply at her side.

"River, I'm sorry," breathed the Doctor from his post next to the console. He did not move toward her, but patiently waited for her to reply. She stayed silent.


	12. Just Sleep

**Here you are, as promised, another chapter! And can I just say that I'm in love with this chapter, so I hope all of you are as fond of it as I am. It shows sides of River and the Doctor that haven't really been explored much on the show.**

**I'd love to hear what you think, so please leave me a review! It would be ever so appreciated! Reviews are what make me want to write you all more chapters!**

**I don't own Doctor Who...or River, how unfortunate, yeah? Ah well. Enjoy!**

**Happy reading!**

* * *

The lights were dimmed in the control room where the Doctor loped around the console adjusting a knob here and aligning a lever there. His face was downcast and haggard. There were dark circles under his eyes and his normal chipper smile could not be seen on his youthful face. His eyes, dulled with exertion, occasionally flitted to the figure seated in one of the chairs near the console. Her back was to him allowing him to only see her blonde curls tumbling over her hunched shoulders instead of her face. But he didn't need to see it, he knew the expression on it and it broke his hearts.

"River, you need to go to bed. You're exhausted," he urged gently, taking a hesitant step in her direction. She did not look up from the small computer in her hands when she answered.

"I can't," her voice was hoarse and betrayed the extent of her weariness, but she pretended she was fine.

"I know you want to spend all the time you can trying to find them, but River you are seven months pregnant. You can't keep doing this to yourself. It's bad for the baby," pressed the Doctor as he came closer to her and kneeled down in front of her. She looked down on him with all the exhaustion and pain in her face she had been feeling over the long months they had spent looking for her parents then turned her gaze on her stomach. It was no longer a small nearly unnoticeable bump under her dress, but now extended outward in a large bulge betraying the extent of her pregnancy. It had been four months since they had watched her parents being drug away by the silence. She had spent every waking moment searching for them-even when she forced the Doctor to return her to Stormcage every few days she worked, but they had found no leads.

"How have we not found them yet, my love?" she asked so softly. Her hands abandoned the computer she had been busy typing data into and instead rested protectively over her stomach. The Doctor's hands joined hers and began gently rubbing her belly comfortingly.

"It's the silence, River. They're good at hiding things. It's hard to find out anything with them lurking around, but you know I won't stop looking until I find them. You know I wouldn't leave our baby without grandparents, yeah?" He spoke just as softly as she had as he looked deeply into her eyes. He now wore an encouraging smile for her benefit. Her eyes became watery as she placed her hand on his over her stomach while the other reached out to cup his cheek.

"My Doctor," she breathed before letting her eyes close and her hand fall from her face back into her lap.

"Yours forever and always, now come along dear and hop on to bed. You know you need to rest for your own sake and the baby's. I'll wake you soon," encouraged the Doctor brightly as he straightened his legs and offered River his hands to help her to her feet. She did not object, but reached out and used the Doctor to get herself to her feet. She did not let go of his hand as he accompanied her to the nearest bedroom. He watched her out of the corner of his eye, wishing they were not in the situation they were. A pregnancy like this was stressful enough for her, but to lose her parents in the midst of it was too much. He would never forgive himself for letting it happen.

"Sleep well, River. You know where to find me if you need anything," he told her as she stepped into the room. He began closing the door, but stopped when he heard her voice behind him.

"Doctor?"

"Yes, River?" He turned back to her only to find her right in front of him. To his surprise she flung her arms around his neck and buried her head in his shoulder as she began to cry. Sympathy coursed through him as he enveloped her in his arms and began rubbing her back and stroking her hair to calm her.

"There, there, everything will be all right," he soothed.

"I hate hormones," moaned River making an amused chuckle tumble from the Doctor's mouth. "I don't even know why I'm crying!"

"Oh, dear," his face softened as he pulled her closer to him, "your mind and body are stressed and strained. It's the over-exertion you've been putting yourself through. Come now and get into bed. A good sleep will wash it right out of your system. Hey, it's all right," he pulled her arms from around his neck and looked into her tear-streaked face as he said the last bit. She smiled despite her sobs and allowed him to lead her over to the bed. Like a child she permitted him to help her into bed and tuck the blankets securely around her. By the time she was comfortably situated with the Doctor perched on the edge of the bed her tears had ceased, and she just lay looking distantly at the wall not actually seeing it.

"This is a new River I've never seen before-so subdued and meek," teased the Doctor gently as he twirled one of her curls around his finger.

"I'm tired," was the only explanation she gave before letting her eyelids flutter closed. The Doctor took this as the cue for his dismissal. As silently as he could he abandoned his perch beside her and tip-toed out of the room, shutting the light off as he went. Relief flowed through him as he walked away from the room. Finally he had gotten her to sleep. As he continued his work on the console his step was now a little lighter and his face looked just a little less despairing.

Hours later in the dark bedroom River woke suddenly to something gently touching her arm. With a gasp she shot up in bed and looked around in confusion; her eyelids still heavy from her deep sleep. She was about to leap out of bed and run for the Doctor until her eyes landed on what had woken her. Curled next to her in a steady slumber was her Doctor. In his sleep he had reached out and rested his hand on her arm unknowingly. Unable to hold it back, River let an understanding smile pull up the corners of the lips which had been frowning for too long. She was not the only one over-exerting herself.

With as little movement as she could manage she wriggled back down under the blankets and gently placed them over the Doctor as well. She lay looking at him with tender love in her face. Slowly she reached out for his hand and laced her fingers with his. Just as she expected his eyes fluttered open and locked onto her gaze.

"Did I wake you?" he questioned worriedly.

"It's fine, my love," she murmured back before sliding closer to him and holding his hand even more tightly.

"Sleep," he instructed her from his side of the bed.

"As you wish, Sweetie," she purred back then closed her eyes obediently. Together the two of them floated back to the land of dreams to escape, for a while, the darkness their lives had become. When they woke their quest for the Ponds would continue once more. For now; however, the invincible couple gave in to weakness and slept.


	13. It's Coming

**Sorry for the long wait between posts! Writer's block. I'm sure you all know how that goes, but maybe this time I will actually be back to keep steady updates coming!**

**Here is the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it and review it. The more reviews I get the faster I will update for you. Reviews always make me so happy, so please, please leave me one!**

**As usual I do not own Doctor Who or any of the characters. Allons-y!**

* * *

"River! River, wake up!" the over-excited voice of the Doctor permeated the silence of the room where River slept. She woke groggily and looked around, blinking the sleep from her eyes. For a moment she was confused as to what woke her, but not for long. Again the Doctor's voice urging her to hurry rang through the hallways of the Tardis. She rolled her eyes at him and threw off the blankets which she had been under.

"I hate him sometimes," she mumbled under her breath as she used all her strength to heave herself to her feet. The effort left her a little out of breath as she began to toddle her way out of the bedroom and to the console room.

"No, you don't!" came the Doctor's voice through the halls as if he had been able to hear her causing River to roll her eyes at him again. "Are you almost here yet?"

"Doctor, what have I told you? I'm carrying another person inside me, I am not going to be as quick as I used to be," River explained as she appeared in the doorway of the console room with one arm wrapped around her massive stomach. She gave it a small pat as she smiled at the Doctor and hobbled her way down the steps with a firm grip on the railing at all times.

"You look like you're trying to hide a planet it there," declared the Doctor as she reached the bottom of the stairs and he received her into his arms.

"In a way it is our baby's own little planet, at least for a little while," she murmured back to him as she rested her head on his chest.

"Doing all right, River?" he questioned with one arm still around her while the other one moved to rest on her stomach. He thought she looked as if she was about to burst, but he knew better than to tell her that.

"I'm all right," she replied, but did not look up at him. The Doctor knew this meant she was troubled, but he did not press her; for, he had a way to fix her troubles. He released her and she placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at him before speaking.

"Is there a reason you felt the need to wake me up, Sweetie? Or did you just need the company?" The Doctor's face lit up as she asked this question, the right question, just like always.

"Yes! I mean, no! I mean-oh nevermind! But, I found them! River, I found them!" The Doctor threw his arms up in the air and did a strange wiggly dance as he stared expectantly at her awaiting a reaction. She did not move, did not blink, did not even seem to breathe. She was frozen where she stood with her mouth slightly agape and her eyes locked on the Doctor. His face fell as a moment passed and River still stood locked in place.

"River, your parents, I found them. The Ponds! We can go rescue them now! Aren't you happy?" He let his arms fall from to his sides and he strode to her, moving to reach for her shoulders. Suddenly she closed her mouth, gave her head a small shake as if to rouse herself, then motioned for him to not come any closer.

"I just…I just need a moment. Hormones," she explained and he couldn't help but smile. For the past few months hormones had been her explanation for all of her emotional moments. It amused the Doctor, but he kept it to himself and did his best to wait patiently for her to recover. He had begun squirming when River finally looked at him once more wearing a calm expression. She said no word to him, but instead walked past him to where her gun holster was slung over the console railing. She removed her blaster from it then turned to face the Doctor and smiled wickedly.

"What are we waiting for, Sweetie?" She winked at him and the Doctor laughed. He ran to the console and began dancing around it gleefully.

"Ponds, here we come! The Doctors are on their way!" shouted the Doctor as he smashed down a button sending the Tardis into flight. The flight was smooth-well, as smooth as it always was when the Doctor drove, but he landed the old girl exactly where he wanted her. River was busy on her computer the Doctor examined the scanner quickly to be sure they were in the same spot.

"It's really frustrating it took us this long to find a planet we'd already been on," sighed River as she tucked all her necessary items; her computer, med scanner, torch, and diary into a small bag slung across her body and resting on her hip. Her holster had ceased fitting long ago, so she'd had to resort to other means of carrying around her supplies.

"Well, if you can't remember you'd been there before or the coordinates it makes it a bit difficult to find. Especially since it is a plant which did not want to be found," answered the Doctor with a formal straightening of his bowtie. He and River locked gazes for just a second before they simultaneously moved toward the doors of the Tardis.

"Are you sure you want to come, River. You know this is going to be dangerous…"

"Doctor, are you suggesting I stay behind?" interrupted River threateningly.

"Uh…no. Never, that's absurd. All right, let's go,"

"Perhaps we should cloak her? If we're lucky they won't know we're here yet, so we don't want a big blue box giving us away," suggested River as she took a step back toward the console.

"Yeah, good idea, dear," replied the Doctor brightly as he hopped back up the steps and pulled a few levers. River was rather impressed he didn't mess anything up as he cloaked the old girl. He reappeared at her side a second later looking serious and ready for anything.

"You're learning. You didn't even break anything this time," she praised teasingly.

"Oh, shut up and let's go rescue your parents."

"I won't object to that." Together they pulled open the Tardis doors to reveal the familiar foggy landscape of the Planet of the Silence.

"Do you think this is their home planet?" asked River as she took a hesitant step out of the Tardis.

"I'm almost positive it is. It only fits. A planet whose location you can't remember inhabited by creatures you can't remember. All in all it's a situation I don't like the sound of. Let's get going!" The Doctor beamed as she strutted out of the Tardis and into the dense fog. River did have to give him points for bravery…or was it cockiness? She wasn't sure, but she loved him either way. As they walked she pulled out her computer and began tracking the location of her parents.

"Doctor, I've got human life signs this way," she announced gesturing to their left where a formidable black building could be seen looming in the darkness.

"Dark Scary silence buildings….this was not on my Christmas list. Are you ready River?" he turned to her and saw her standing with her blaster in her hand looking so impish and sexy at the same time it was almost too much for him to handle.

"Aren't I always?" she questioned slyly then began leading the way to the building. They crept side by side through the fog keeping a close eye on their surroundings. They would not be caught off guard this time around. They were ready for whatever might come at them. They reached the building with no resistance and located a small side door which the Doctor quickly soniced his way into with no trouble.

"This is going rather smoothly. It's giving me a bad feeling," murmured River as they crouched amongst shadows while she attempted to upload the building schematics to her computer, but in vain.

"Ugh, it's not working! This stupid planet is messing with my equipment," she complained as she wacked the computer on her leg in frustration.

"At least it's telling us they are alive and their general location. Look we aren't that far away. We could probably find our way there," was the Doctor's encouraging reply.

"Yes, that's a great idea. We should just wander blindly through a building which is probably brimming with Silence looking for my parents who are bait to bring you and me here. That doesn't sound dangerous at all," was River's impatient reply.

"I thought you liked dangerous," whispered the Doctor cheekily.

"I hate you."

"No, you don't."

"Fine. Let me lead the way. You'll get us lost," insisted River as she leapt out of her hiding place and began marching, quite noiselessly, down the hallway with the Doctor in tow trying to keep as quiet as she was, but failing.

"How are you being so quiet when you're carrying the weight of two people?"

"It's called talent, Sweetie, and I'll overlook that little insult," she murmured back.

"What? No! It wasn't an insult…It wasn't a…" the Doctor spluttered as he paused and tried to correct his mistake. She just kept walking ignoring him. He wasn't aware an amused smile was skipping across her lips. He just sighed and jogged to catch up with her and hung his shoulders in a defeated manner.

"My you do pout like such a child sometimes, honey," she chided as she directed them down a corridor to their left.

"This place is strangely empty," muttered the Doctor ignoring her comment.

"I was thinking the same thing. We haven't spotted a single Silence," added River.

"At least not that we can remember."

"The computer says we're very close now. I'd say one more turn and we'll be right at the door to wherever they are being held."

"Bring on the Ponds!" invited the Doctor gleefully and slightly too loud causing River to shush him very harshly. He looked apologetic, but she could see the excitement brimming in his eyes and knew he was as happy as she was to be so close to finding her parents. They took their last turn and found themselves standing before a very impressive looking steel door.

"How long?"

"Give me about a minute, maybe less, maybe more," responded the Doctor as he whipped out the sonic and bent over the door to work out the locks. River stood by watching and tapping her fingers impatiently. She was very ready to see her parents.

The Doctor had been right. It took him exactly sixty seconds to sonic his way through all the security and locks on the door without even setting the alarm off. The door swung open to reveal exactly what they had been looking for. Two small beds were pushed together in the middle of a bare room and in the makeshift double bed lay the Ponds fast asleep.

"We've found them," breathed River as she rushed into the room and to the side of the bed. She sat down gently and brushed a lock of her mother's hair away from the freckled cheek. Tears were brimming in River's eyes as she watched Amy and Rory sleeping peacefully for a moment.

"Do you think they have been hurt in any way?" asked River. She sounded very concerned and almost as if she didn't want to know the answer, but she knew she needed to.

"There's only one way to know for sure. Wake them," he urged, and she did as she was told.

"Mum, mum wake up. We're here. We've come to get you," she called out as she shook her mother gently in an effort not to startle her. Slowly Amy came round. She was groggy for a brief moment until she recognized who was looking down at her. Suddenly the red-head was wide awake and alert with her arms flung around River's neck.

"Oh, River, I was so worried! I'm so glad you're okay!" gasped Amy happily as both women shed happy tears locked in each other's embrace.

"I could say the same for you," laughed River through her sobs. Beside Amy Rory was coming round and looking a little confused.

"Hello there, Rory the Roman," greeted the Doctor from his place at the foot of the bed.

"Hello, Doctor. You found us," replied Rory as if he needed to clarify it for himself.

"Did you ever doubt that I would?" questioned the Doctor quite sure he already knew the answer.

"No, I knew you were comin'. You always come back for us," answered Amy as she and River finally broke their embrace so River could move to the other side of the bed to hug her dad and allow the Doctor to have his turn with Amy.

"Have you been here all this time?" questioned the Doctor once he and Amy had given each other a good strong hug.

"Um, yeah. We don't ever see anyone. They push a bit of food through that little hatch every once in a while. We're really left to ourselves," replied Amy.

"It gets really boring," added Rory in a very dissatisfactory tone which made River laugh.

"Well, we can go back to the Tardis now where…." but she didn't get to finish her sentence. Her mouth fell open and she clutched her stomach with both hands. A moan fell from her mouth and she squeezed her eyes tightly shut.

"River, River what is it?" a very panicked Doctor answered. River looked at him and spoke as calmly as she could.

"The baby, it's coming."


	14. A Hindered Escape

******I asked and you all delivered. Wow! Thank you so much for the tremendous response I got to the last chapter. I was completely blown away. I hope this one satisfies you all as much as the last one did!**

**Please leave me reviews! I love them ever so much, and it makes me want to write even quicker when I hear how you all are enjoying the story.**

**As ever doctor Who is not mine.**

**Happy Reading!**

* * *

"Doctor, how long have we been here? She was only three months when they took us," asked Amy in a rather high pitched voice as she raced to River's side and began rubbing her back. River was standing with one hand on her stomach and one hand on the bedframe to keep herself from falling over. She was panting, but trying to look calm at the same time.

"I'm eight and a half months now. It shouldn't be here yet," gasped River as she glanced up at Amy.

"We were here almost six months?" asked Amy in disbelief.

"We did our best, Amy, I swear, but this place his hard to find once you leave," was the Doctor's earnest answer.

"It could just be Braxton Hicks contractions," suggested Rory.

"If it was I don't think my water would have just broken," snapped River, squeezing her eyes shut in preparation for another wave of pain.

"River, just breathe and try to stay calm. Maybe you should sit down," suggested Rory going straight into nurse mode, but as soon as he said this he wished he hadn't.

"What could possibly possess you to think I'm going to have this baby here? That's exactly what they want! Well, it's not going to happen!" River shouted angrily at Rory. With great effort she straightened herself as best she could and began walking slowly toward the door with one arm protectively over her stomach.

"River!" called the Doctor desperately as he leapt after her.

"What?" she asked as beads of sweat began forming on her forehead.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going back to the Tardis."

"River, stop! What if the Silence see you? What are you going to do?" questioned Amy as she ran to her daughter's side and put an arm around her to support her. On the other side of River the Doctor mimicked Amy while Rory followed quickly behind with River's abandoned computer in his hand.

"I'd rather have them catch me when I'm trying to escape then just handing my baby to them on a silver platter. Over my dead body will they get this child," declared River passionately and the Doctor noticed as she said this her eyes blurred with tears, but she did not let them fall. As he watched the pain twist onto her face he resolved to make sure they would make it back to the Tardis. He would not let these monsters have his child.

"They won't get our baby, River. I won't let them take our baby like they took you. I promise," he murmured to her. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and he could see she believed every word he said. He placed a kiss on her cheek then began to walk faster supporting more of her weight, so she could move quicker.

"How exactly do we get out of here?"

"Oh, Rory, always the practical one, aren't you? We just have to go back the way we came," replied the Doctor nonchalantly.

"Um, Doctor, if that's the way you came I don't think that plan is going to work," announced Amy pointing down the corridor he and River had taken to get there.

"Why…..oh. Yeah, it looks like we'll be finding another way out. Come on, River, this way. Hang in there, dear," encouraged the Doctor as he half supported half dragged River around a different corner with Amy and Rory following behind.

"Here, Amy, take this," ordered River as she pulled her gun out of her pocket and handed it over. Amy took it with confusion and held it awkwardly.

"What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Oh, mother, you've watched me enough. I'm sure you can figure it out." River gave her mother a wink before letting out a pained moan and clutching her stomach with both hands.

"River!" The Doctor's hands fluttered over her helplessly as he tried to figure out a way to help her.

"We need to keep moving, honey, one: because this baby is impatient and two: because the Silence are right there!" River pointed to three Silents moving quickly toward them. As quickly as she could in her predicament River began leading the way down the corridor. As they moved she snatched her computer from Rory and began examining it.

"Still not schematics?" inquired the Doctor as he peeked over his shoulder to see the number of enemies following them had doubled…at least according to the tick marks on his hand. River had noticed too and posed an impatient question at her mother.

"I didn't just hand you that to carry, mum. Are you going to use it or not?"

"Oh, yeah, right," Amy suddenly remembered she had a gun in her hand. With great determination and Rory's hands to keep her from tripping, Amy turned around as they retreated and pointed the gun at the creatures quickly advancing on them.

"That's my grandbaby and you can't have it," she informed them before shooting each one.

"Now I know where she gets it from!" declared the Doctor gleefully as he turned his attention from Amy back to his wife.

"She's Scottish, what did you expect, Sweetie?" River asked in breathless laughter. "God, I need more hands." She was attempting to support herself against the wall, clutch her stomach, and examine her computer all at once, but it wasn't working.

"Here, let me," the Doctor tried to take the computer from her but she pulled it out of his reach.

"If I thought you could figure it out I would have asked you to do it," she informed him impatiently. He looked a bit hurt, but tried to hide it as he instead pulled her arm around his shoulders so he could help support her once more.

"How are the contractions, River," asked Rory as they began moving forward once more wary of any Silents that could be nearby.

"Oh, you know, as painful as ever. Now, how about we focus on getting out of here before this baby decides it doesn't want to wait any longer, yeah?"

"Um….yeah, good idea," faltered Rory, taken aback by his daughter's aggressive attitude.

"Amy, if you don't mind it'd be really great if you'd shoot straight ahead because we've got incoming!" announced the Doctor and Amy once more lifted the gun and took out more Silence.

"Better?" she asked innocently.

"I don't think I'm going to be able to get used to that," muttered the Doctor as he tried to pull River along faster, but she was moving as fast as she could.

"I've got them!" she declared when they were at the end of the corridor getting ready to blindly turn one way or another.

"Got what?" asked a confused Doctor.

"The schematics! This way!" to the Doctor's utter surprise River pushed him off her and began hobbling down the right corridor with her computer held before her face.

"Look at my girl go," laughed Amy under her breath.

"Are you coming? We've got a load of Silence right on our tails. And if we don't hurry they're going to box us in," River called over her shoulder.

"Coming dear!" the Doctor called back still amazed at his wife. He and the Ponds rushed after River.

"So Doctor where exactly did you park the Tardis? Please tell me its close," begged Amy as they took another turn. She had completely lost track of where they were or which way they were going. She hoped River was taking them the right way. Disaster would ensue if they got lost. They didn't have time to get lost, which was probably why River wasn't letting the Doctor give directions.

"It's close….ish," he answered hesitantly. "We may have cloaked it…"

"Doctor!" moaned Amy.

"Mum, it is fine. I know where it is….but that could hinder out getting to it," sighed River as she looked up to find a horde of Silence standing before them. They all skidded to a halt.

"Any ideas?" asked the Doctor, gulping nervously.


	15. I'm Sorry

******You all are brilliant, I hope you know that. The response I have been getting to this story is just amazing. I'm so happy you all are loving it. It's making me impatient to update!**

**Here is the next chapter full of lots of intensity. I hope you all like it. Please, please, please leave me a review because I definitely want to know how you feel about this chapter. The more reviews the faster I will update. Enjoy!**

**Happy Reading!**

* * *

"I've got one. Everyone hold onto me," yelled River. Confused Amy and Rory did as they were told, but the Doctor just stared at River in horror as she lifted her arm and began punching things into her vortex manipulator.

"River, don't you dare…" he began, but he was cut off by her reaching out and gripping his wrist then the four of them disappeared from the corridor. Mere seconds later they were all standing safely in the control room of the Tardis.

"Well, then, safe and sound," panted River as she reached for the railing to keep herself standing.

"What have you done?" breathed the Doctor, quiet anger was laced between his words. It frightened both Amy and Rory who were regaining their bearings after traveling by vortex manipulator for the first time.

"What does it look like I've done, Doctor?" inquired River harshly. As she spoke she sank to the floor gripping her stomach and squeezing her eyes shut in pain once more "Doctor, please, we don't have time for this argument. The baby is coming, and it's not going to wait any longer."

"Doctor, why is she progressing so quickly? Labor is a process….and it's not a process that happens this fast. Something could be wrong," half in nurse mode half in father mode Rory questioned the Doctor as he watched his daughter worriedly.

"She's half Timelord, and our babies don't take their sweet time coming into the world. They sort of launch into it with a hunger for life. This baby could be here any minute….except it might not be here at all thanks to you!" The Doctor's voice turned to an enraged shout as he spoke the last part and turned to glare at River.

"What would you have me do, Doctor? I had no choice!" she snapped back in an attempt to defend her actions. She was trying to keep herself calm by breathing deeply, but it was not working. Anger was boiling in her belly and she wanted to yell back at the Doctor as angrily as he had yelled at her.

"You promised me, River! You promised you wouldn't use the manipulator! I didn't even know you had it!"

"I didn't have a choice! I would rather my baby die than ever be handed over to the Silence!" was River's passionate answer. Rory as kneeling on the floor beside her patting her shoulder, but he was at a loss for what else to do. Amy was standing and just watching the married couple fight as River came closer and closer to delivering.

"Well, you might have just gotten your wish granted. Congratulations!" bellowed the Doctor as angry tears welled in his eyes, but he was too upset to let them spill over. He began running his fingers through his hair and pacing in small circles impatiently. When he came close to Amy he was hit with a sudden shock. She smacked him across the face with all the force she could muster leaving his face red and burning.

"Don't you ever talk to my daughter like that again, Doctor," she snarled and her hair seemed to almost turn a deeper red due to the anger which was now pumping through her Scottish veins.

"Okay, okay, I think everyone should just calm down now. We have a woman about to have a baby and we're all shouting at each other. That's not going to accomplish anything. Amy help me get her up and move her," Rory took charge as the other three fumed angrily at each other. Amy gave one last glare to the Doctor before she moved to River's other side. Together she and Rory lifted their daughter to her feet and began steering her toward the stairs to lead them deeper into the Tardis. The Doctor watched for a second then ran his hand over his face revealing a worry and weariness which had previously been masked by his anger.

"Third door on the left," he called after the Ponds as he moved to follow them.

"Why?" asked Amy in a voice which declared clearly she had not come close to forgiving her yet.

"Because that's our….bedroom. Just take her there," he sighed deeply, regretting the anger he had shown to River then followed the Ponds to the room. Gingerly River was laid on the bed. Her chest was heaving and she was dripping in sweat. Once she was on the bed she let her head fall back into the pillows and let out a loud moan of pain.

"Oh, god, it hurts!"

"Rory, what do we do?" asked Amy as she moved to stand in front of River.

"I…I…why are you looking at me? I am not going to deliver my daughter's baby. I'm sorry, but that's not going to happen!" Rory waved his hands in protest as he took numerous backward steps away from the bed.

"Well, what are we supposed to do then?" Amy stood looking at him with her hands on her hips. "It's not like I know how to deliver a baby."

"I can tell you what to do…."

"I don't care who delivers this baby, but if you don't decide soon I'm going to do it myself!" gasped River.

"Oh, Pond, move!" impatiently the Doctor nudged Amy out of the way so he was standing before his wife on the bed.

"River, just breath. It's going to be fine. Everything is going to be okay. I just need to check and see if you should push now or not."

"No, no it's not going to be okay and you know it," she answered him in a strangely meek voice. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I used the manipulator, but I couldn't…I couldn't let them get our baby. You know I couldn't."

"Hush, it's time to push, dear. You can do this," he encouraged lovingly, but his voice could not hide the anger which was still burning in his eyes.

"Here, hold my hand, sweetheart. Everything is going to be fine," Amy was at her daughter's side offering a motherly hand and smoothed the mass of blonde curls which was soaked through with sweat out of her daughter's face. River looked at her mother and Amy was surprised to find there was deep despair etched into her daughter's face. She didn't understand it.

"Ready, push!" ordered the Doctor and despite the fear welling inside her she did as she was told. Gripping her mother's hand tightly River let out a wail and pushed with all her might.

"You're doing great, come on, again, Push!" The Doctor coached River as he stood ready to bring his baby into the world. River pushed and Amy encouraged. Rory stood a little ways away prepared to examine the baby and make sure it was safe and healthy. After many suspenseful moments full of shouts, sweat, and tears a small baby was cradled in the Doctor's arms, but the room did not fill with cries; for, the tiny baby's face was blue and its little limbs were motionless.

"It's a boy," whispered the Doctor as he held the infant so tenderly in his arms.

"Oh, god!" sobbed River as she lay on the bed waiting in suspense to hear the healthy cries of her baby, but knowing she wouldn't hear them.

"Doctor…" Amy was afraid to finish her question as she sat gripping her daughter's hand now for comfort because she knew what was going to be said next.

"He is….he's…..my son," the Doctor wasn't able to finish his sentence as he held the unmoving baby tightly against his chest. Tears dripped into the soft fluff of blonde curl atop the boy's head as the Doctor's body began to shake with sobs. On the bed River too was sobbing and tossing her head back and forth as a protest against the truth.

"No, no please, no!" she cried helplessly. She held her mother's hand desperately as if it was the only thing keeping her from falling apart where she lay.

"What happened? Is he all right?" Rory asked, but seemed to be unable to move from shock.

"This is all your fault!" Rage burned in the Doctor's accusation as he looked at River in loathing with their stillborn child clutched to him as if it would come to life if he could just hold close enough to his hearts.

"I am sorry," the apology offered was spoken so softly and in such a weak voice filled with utter despair it could almost not be heard above the sobs which were mingling with her words, but the Doctor heard his wife's apology despite that and did not forgive her.


	16. Our Son

******The response to last chapter was amazing. I'm literally at shock over the number of review I got. Thank you so much my readers! You really make my day! So to thank you here is the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it and will give me as many reviews as you did over the last chapter!**

**Now I know how Steven Moffat feels. My poor readers. I really am toying with your emotions, aren't I?**

**Happy reading!**

"I don't understand," whispered Amy from where she sat doing her best to calm River who was still crying uncontrollably.

"I've always told you vortex manipulators are a rubbish way to time travel. Well, they're especially rubbish if you're pregnant. It could be fatal to the baby. It _was_ fatal to our baby," the Doctor explained to Amy. The last sentence came out labored and broken as he looked down at the face of his son which he still cradled in his arms. There was silence for a moment as the Doctor held his boy. What couldn't be seen were the wheels turning in his head. He was realizing what he had done. His eyes traveled from the face of his son to the face of his wife. It was tear-stained and distorted with such anguish and exhaustion that hate for his own actions began to stir inside him. He could only imagine how hard it must have been for River to make the choice she had, and now he was only causing her greater grief.

"River," he spoke softly as he stood and moved to her side. He knelt beside the bed and took her hand in his. As lovingly as he could he leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek right over one of the tears making its way toward her hair splayed on the pillow. She turned her head to look at him and held her lips tightly together trying to withhold the sobs which were still trying to spill out of her.

"I'm sorry, River. I'm sorry. I know you were only trying to do what was best. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't. It was mine for letting you come with me to get your parents. Please don't cry, dear," he murmured to her as he reached up to stroke her cheek with his fingers as he still held her fingers laced with his and their son gently in his other arm.

"It…it was my fault, but I couldn't…I was-wasn't going to let them take him. I could not let our baby suffer like I did Doctor," she managed to choke out to him.

"Hey, hey, hush now," urged the Doctor gently as he continued to stroke her cheek, "you need to rest."

"Let me hold him. Please let me hold my son." These words were firm as River said them. Before anyone could protest she repositioned herself so she was sitting and held out her arms expectantly for her baby. The Doctor did not even attempt to protest. Instead, he gingerly held out the baby boy to his wife who took it so gently it was impossible to mistake her for anything except its mother.

"He has your hair," whispered the Doctor as he perched on the edge of the bed and put an arm around River's shoulders to comfort both her and himself.

"He has your chin," she murmured back as her tears began falling into the soft fluff of hair on the baby's head to mingle with the ones her husband had already shed. There was silence in the room as River and the Doctor sat holding each other and their son as they rode their first painful wave of loss together. River stroked the curls of her son and the Doctor held the little fingers in his hand.

"We have to name him," River announced after a moment as she looked up into the Doctor's eyes.

"Yes," the Doctor's answer was soft and pained, but he gave a small nod of agreement. River looked down at her child once more, cradled to her chest, and whispered a phrase softly to him. The words were not English, but their intonations swirled through the air and left a melodic ring hanging there even after River had stopped speaking.

"That's beautiful," said Amy in awe.

"It's Gallifreyan," River informed her mother, "It means 'our beloved son.'"

"It's a perfect name, River," declared the Doctor. He held the small hand which was in his even tighter as pain twisted its way through his hearts at the sound of his lost language. His lost son named in the lost language of his people who were no more. There was such an ache in the Doctor's heart he felt almost as if he was going to fall apart.

The ring of the boy's name had not left the air when suddenly it was shattered with the sudden sound of a painful moan escaping River's lips. Her mouth fell open in shock and she looked to the Doctor with surprise filling her eyes.

"What is it?" asked the Doctor grasping her hand in concern.

"Contractions…." she breathed in disbelief.

"Contractions?" asked Amy incredulously.

"There's only one reason you'd still be having contractions," came the calm voice of Rory who was once more in nurse mode. He was standing at the Doctor's side and carefully lifted the baby from River's arms. For a second he looked down on it with sadness filling his face, but he was interrupted by an impatient question from the Doctor.

"And why would that be, Rory?"

"River, you're having twins," Rory told River as he looked at her with love filling his face. He knew what his daughter was feeling. He knew how it felt to lose a child. His eyes held sympathy and she saw it, but it did not register in her mind; for, it was filled with shock.

"Twins?" she questioned. Unconsciously her hand found the Doctor's and gripped it tightly. The Doctor leapt to his feet and was standing in front of his wife once more.

"Yes, dear, you're having twins….We're having twins!" Sorrow and excitement mingled in the Doctor's voice as he spoke. It was impossible for Amy to figure out whether he was happy or sad as he stood ready to bring a second baby into the world. Once more she took her post at her daughter's side and grasped her hand.

"Doctor, what are the chances that this baby…"

"Not worrying about that right now, Pond. It's time to deliver another baby. River are you ready to push?" interrupted the Doctor. He didn't even want to consider the question Amy was asking him. He wanted only to make sure he got the baby into the world. He would worry about the rest when it came to that.

"Yes," gasped River as she was hit with another wave of pain, but her face was determined and she gripped her mother's hand tightly and prepared herself for the Doctor's order to push. For a moment there was silence only broken by Amy's reminder to breath until the Doctor finally looked up at his wife.

"Time to push, River. Push!" Once again the room filled with River's wails, Amy's encouragement, and the Doctor's instructions. Rory stood by with the baby boy in his arms on pins and needles hoping when the Doctor cradled the second baby in his arms the room would fill with its healthy cries. River was once more drenched in sweat by the time she came close to delivering her second baby.

"One last push!" announced the Doctor. With all her remaining strength River gave one last loud wail and pushed. It was seconds later the Doctor held their second baby in his arms.


	17. Beginnings In Endings

**You all are truly amazing. I got such a large response to last chapter! Thank you so much! here is the next one. I'm going to warn you it is just as sad as the last two, so if you have been prone to tears during this story you probably don't want to read it anywhere that crying could be a problem.**

**I hope you all enjoy this next chapter. It's one I've been planning since the beginning of the story and it's one of my favorites. Please tell me what you think! I'd really love a review from all of you! The more reviews I get the faster I update!**

**Happy reading!**

* * *

Weak wails from the child squirming in the Doctor's arms rang through the room, and relieved laughter poured out of River's mouth. Amy released the suspenseful breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding, and the tension which had been thick in the air thinned a bit as River held out her arms expectantly for her child.

"It's a girl! We have a daughter," announced the Doctor softly in a tone of disbelief. His heart was torn between joy and sorrow. He had lost his son, but here was a healthy baby girl to dull the pain.

"A daughter," sighed River as the baby was placed in her arms still bawling fiercely which turned its tiny face bright red. River began to stroke the soft cheek and murmur calming words. In less than a moment the small child's cries subsided and its curly head nestled contentedly against River. Something similar to a sob mixed with a laugh escaped from River's mouth as she looked down lovingly at her baby girl. The Doctor was soon at River's side cupping the tiny cheek in his hand. Amy and Rory huddled around them with smiles of happiness on their faces.

"Look, Pond, she's got your hair!" declared the Doctor as he pointed to the sparse ruby curl which adorned the child's head.

"Well, sort of. River's got mixed in too it looks like," laughed Amy as she wrapped one of the silky baby curls around her finger gently. River continued to stare down at her daughter for a moment, but suddenly her eyes snapped up to Rory and the infant he was still holding.

"Give him here," she ordered softly and brokenly. Rory looked confused but did not argue. Tenderly he handed over the stillborn boy so River cradled a baby in each arm. She was silent as she lay surveying her children with tears glistening in her green eyes. In the loving manner only a mother can manage River slowly leaned forward and placed a kiss on the forehead of first her son and then her daughter.

"My beautiful babies….my beautiful babies who will never know each other. My poor son, and my poor girl," she whispered as she turned to look at her husband. He squeezed her arm and mimicked her actions by placing a kiss on the forehead of each infant as lovingly as only a father could.

Without warning River suddenly sat fully up and turned herself so she could swing her legs off the bed. The Doctor sprang from where he had been sitting and stood in front of her to block her way, but she just scooted over and stood up. Slowly, but steadily she began to walk toward the door of the bedroom. She clenched her teeth ignoring the pain walking so early after birth had caused.

"River, where are you going?" demanded the Doctor as he hurried to her side and did his best to hinder her from continuing; though, he was very aware she held his children in her arms and could do little but try to step in her way.

"I'm going to the console room," she informed him with thick emotion lacing her tone. Tears were streaking down her face as she continued to walk. After a few more steps the Doctor realized why she was crying, and it broke his hearts to think of. Suddenly his arms were around her and their children. She peeked at him and saw the tears on his own face. An unspoken understanding passed between their locked gazes. The Doctor ceased to protest and instead did his best to support River as they made their way toward the control room.

"What are you doing?" came the concerned voice of Amy from behind them, but neither the Doctor nor River responded. It was less from choice and more due to the large painful lumps of sadness lodged in their throats preventing them from speaking. When they reached the control room River turned to the Doctor and gently placed their daughter into his arms. She held her baby boy close to her chest, as if she was afraid of him disappearing any second, as she began to press buttons and pull levers to send the Tardis into flight. Simultaneously the Doctor began to do the same thing.

Amy and Rory stood by watching in utter confusion as the Doctor and River danced around the console driving their Tardis in the most solemn manner the Ponds had ever seen. Without realizing it the married couple had reached for each other's hands to help unite them against the pain they were being forced to endure at the loss of their first grandchild and the resurfacing of their own loss many years ago. Memories had been reeling through Amy's brain since the baby boy had been born and pain had been stabbing at her heart at the remembrance of the loss of her own baby; of her daughter being ripped from her arms before she could ever even form a memory of her mother's face. Now, here stood that baby Amy had lost all those years ago being forced to endure the same thing: the loss of a child.

There were no words spoken between the Doctor and River, but they managed to fly the Tardis smoothly to their destination. Slowly the couple stepped away from the console and reached for each other's hands. The Doctor supported River as best he could as they made their way to the Tardis doors. The Ponds crept forward in curiosity, but dared not speak yet, but when the doors of the police box were pulled open to reveal to they were in deep space with two balls of bright burning light before them.

"Okay, I don't understand what's going on. Doctor, explain," insisted Amy trying to keep a demanding tone from her assertive voice. The Doctor turned to Amy, while River kept all her attention on the baby in her arms. She seemed to be trying to memorize his every detail.

"Do you remember when you thought I died, Amy?" he asked her gravely.

"Well, yeah, of course, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"And you put me in the boat?"

"Yes, I remember all of that, but it's not clearing up anything, Doctor."

"Amy, the babies are almost full Timelord. And you remember what River said about the body of a Timelord?" The Doctor pressed hoping Amy would understand. It took a few seconds but suddenly the realization fell on Amy and soon after Rory. Instinctively Rory's arms wrapped around his wife to comfort her and to draw comfort from her as they dealt with the understanding of what had to happen next.

"A Timelord's body is a miracle….Before….before you do this…can I hold him? Just once? You can't let him go without letting me hold my grandson at least once," asked Amy in an oddly meek voice for one who is usually so fiery. River looked reluctant to release her baby, but she obliged and carefully handed over the motionless baby to Amy.

"There isn't much time," the Doctor solemnly informed them as he glanced out at the orbs which looked as if they were going to collide any second. Amy clutched the baby to her chest and began tracing the tiny features of his face delicately, but she knew she did not have long. She cupped the cheek in her hand then placed a kiss on it before handing the baby boy back to his mother.

"What are those exactly?" asked Rory as the Ponds, River, and the Doctor stood in the doorway of the Tardis looking out at the balls of light which seemed to be slowly being pulled closer to each other.

"Those are the beginnings of a star, Mr. Pond. They are about to smash together and create a sun for a brand new solar system, for brand new life, and for brand new worlds" answered the Doctor unable to rid his voice of wonder. Even after 1,200 years of time and space the universe could still awe him. He had to tear his eyes away after a moment and turn to Amy whom he handed his baby girl to. Amy took her with no protestations. The Doctor then turned to River and together they cradled their son between them. He had been wrapped in a soft blue blanket and looked so peaceful he could have merely been asleep.

"It's time," breathed the Doctor as he met the tear-filled eyes of his wife with his own tears spilling over.

"I know, sweetie," she answered back. Together they stepped forward and extended their arms until the little baby was suspended in only their hands in the middle of deep space. As gently as if he had been made of glass his parents let him go, and he began to drift away from the Tardis through the inky black of space toward the shining lights which were ever growing closer to each other.

As soon as her son was no longer in her hand River groped for the Doctor. She was no longer able to hold herself up due to the violent sobs of grief raking through her still weak body. The Doctor pulled her tightly into his arms, but was unable to support both his weight and hers as they cried. In pain they sank to the floor of the Tardis and watched their tiny son float further and further away from them. Suddenly there was a great flash of light as the two orbs collided. As painful as it was to watch River couldn't turn her eyes away until she was sure there was no trace of her son left to watch.

"He's gone," she moaned weakly as she clung to the Doctor with her head resting on his shoulder.

"He's part of the beginning of a new world now, dear. I hope they make it a good one, for his sake," replied the Doctor as he gently stroked the curls of his wife to comfort her. Wave after wave of pain rolled over them as they sat in the doorway of their Tardis enduring the loss of their first born child.


	18. Unexpected Flight

**Here is the next chapter everyone! Sorry I did not update last night, but from here on out these chapters aren't going to flow for me as easily as the last ones did. I will try to continue daily updates, but sometimes it might be every other day. I hope you all don't mind.**

**Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed. Remember to keep those reviews coming. I love to hear how you all are feeling about the story. It motivates me to update faster. The more reviews I get the faster I update.**

**Happy reading all!**

* * *

Quiet, grief-filled sobs rang through the Tardis as the Doctor pulled himself and his wife to their feet. With no words he motioned for Amy to come to him. She obeyed, and he tenderly lifted the now sleeping baby girl from the red-heads arms and placed the child in the arms of his still weeping wife. River gave him a weak but appreciative smile before leaning down and gently pressing her forehead to that of her daughter.

"I promise I will never let anything happen to you, baby," she murmured in a voice thick with earnest.

"Nothing is going to happen to her. I swear it on my life," put in the Doctor as he rubbed his wife's back to try to comfort her. "You should sit down and rest now, dear. You're tired and stressed."

"We need to name her," River firmly announced, completely ignoring the Doctor's suggestion. She still stood in the doorway of the Tardis. She was unable to fully let go of her son yet. As she slowly rocked her baby girl in her arms she stared at the star her baby boy had become.

"Yes, we should do that," replied the Doctor as he stood next to her with a hand on their daughter.

"What do you think of Imogen?" asked Amy suddenly, taking a step forward. "I almost named you that, Melody." River looked up and smiled at her mother.

"I do like that; although, I rather like Emma…"

"Imogen Emma Song," mused the Doctor, looking down on his daughter with love. "Do you know what that name means, River?"

"No, I don't."

"It means, 'our daughter the healer of the universe," he murmured as he ran a hand over the pretty red baby curls.

"Then Imogen Emma it is. May she heal the cracks of our universe, my love," answered River in the same low tone her husband had used. With vivid love and pain battling on his face the Doctor leaned forward and kissed his wife, their tears mingling together into a single stream of despair, which dampened the blanket their baby girl was wrapped in. After a moment the Doctor pulled away and rebelliously rubbed at his eyes to try to rid them of tears.

"Please, rest now, River. You just had a baby…two babies. You have to be exhausted," pressed the Doctor a second time. The Tardis suddenly let out a high pitched wine before River could respond making everyone clap their hands over their ears. Imogen began to wail pitifully and River did her best to try to shield the infant's ears. Suddenly the flight sound rang through the control room and the floor jolted. The Tardis soured into flight.

"What's going on?" shouted Amy as she and Rory lurched for the railing and clung to it to keep themselves from sliding out of the Tardis doors which were still open as the Tardis sped through space.

"River!" The Doctor did not answer Amy's question. His mind was only on his wife and daughter as they helplessly slid toward the open doors of the Tardis. He gave a great leap and wrapped his arms around them then grabbed for the railing just in time. He glanced around as his mind sped through all the possibilities of how his Tardis could have suddenly launched into flight, but came up with none.

"Doctor! It can't fly itself!" bellowed River.

"Then obviously someone is flying her!" It almost seemed as if the Doctor's words triggered something in the Tardis to cause her to stop, but when they looked at what was beyond the opened doors of the Tardis it was obvious that was not the case.

"You're right, Doctor. Someone was flying her, and it wasn't you," came an icy, calm voice which sent chills into the pit of River's stomach.

"You just stay away from us!" ordered River, angrily as she laid eyes on the woman whom she had hated her entire life. She would not soon forget the eye-patch covering one of the beady, scheming eyes, nor the smile which was a crooked as the woman's heart.

"Or what, River Song? Are you going to hurt me?" asked the woman in a mock tone of innocence.

"You don't even want to know what I'll do to you," breathed River in a voice bursting with threat and anger, but the woman in the sleek black suit only laughed as her soldiers, who had marched into the Tardis before the doors could be slammed shut, seized the Doctor, River, Amy, and Rory. As much as they struggled none of them could get free. One of the clerics attempted to pry Imogen from River's arms, but the feisty mother resisted him. River had never fought harder against anything. She was able to injure two of the soldiers before the woman wearing the eye-patch cut in.

"Let her keep the child…..for now," the crooked smile intensified as these words were spoken and the hatred burning in River's heart only grew as she held her baby girl tighter than ever.

"Yes, Madame Kovarian," one of the soldiers replied with a salute. A bone-chilling shiver trickled down the spines of the four being held against their will as the name was spoken aloud.

"We meet again," hissed the Doctor.

"It's been too long, Doctor," replied Kovarian icily.

"You mean not long enough."


	19. Melody 20

**Hello my beautiful readers! I am so so so so so sorry that I have not updated in a long while, but life got in the way and this chapter was hard to write. I hope that you will forgive me; however, and not throw rotten tomatoes at me. This is a chapter that I hope will throw you all for a loop! I also hope that you will enjoy it very much.**

**Please, please, please leave me a review. They make me ever so happy and make me want to update as fast as my fingers can possibly type. The more reviews I get the faster I will update!**

**As always I do not own the gorgeousness of Doctor Who. Only Imogen is mine. **

**Happy Reading!**

* * *

"Whatever way you wish to put it, but you are here now just as I hoped. Everything went according to plan. In fact, it went smoother than I predicted," hummed Kovarian in a voice laced with approval. "And you brought the baby. How nice."

"You stay away from her!" River's tone was thick with venom and undertones of threat, but the woman in black only smirked in response.

"Oh, I won't, but for now she'll stay with you. Ah, you are just as feisty as I remember. You always were an obstinate little child, Melody Pond."

"You deserved any trouble she ever gave you. I hope she gave you hell!" piped up Amy in her fiery way. She couldn't keep quiet whenever a conversation turned to the topic of her little girl's childhood which she had never been able to be a part of.

"Oh, Amy, I know you're still angry with me for taking your baby, but I did it for the benefit of everyone, dear. Poor Melody would have been in danger all the time traveling around with the Doctor, and you wouldn't know how to raise an alien child. It was best that I took her off your hands. Don't you see that?"

"Don't you say that! Don't you ever say that! A child belongs with its mother no matter what. And she wasn't safe with you. She was never safe with you-always performing tests on her and hurting her. You hurt my baby and you'll pay for that!" shouted Amy as she tried to go after Madame Kovarian. The men restraining her almost lost their grips because the strength of the red head was more than they had suspected.

"You think so, do you?"

"Oh, I know so, Madame Kovarian," interceded the Doctor as he gave Amy a look attempting to request she calm down. The situation would not get any better if they all flew off the handle in a passion. "See, you've kidnapped not only myself and my friends, but also my wife and my baby. Upon principal I just can't let you get away with that." At this speech Kovarian cackled joyously, but she did not respond to the Doctor's threat. She turned the conversation back in the direction of River's childhood.

"Doctor, did you ever figure out why all those tests were done on little Melody Pond?" she asked as she subdued her less than appealing laughter. In response the Doctor clenched his teeth and if his hands had been free he would have ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, but this was answer enough for Madame Kovarian. She knew enough about the Doctor to know that this meant he was frustrated.

"No? I didn't think so. Would you like to?"

"It was to check and see how much Timelord she had in her," suggested Rory. This had been the hypothesis they had all come to about what River had gone through as a child, but they weren't certain.

"In the beginning that is what the tests were for, but they soon grew into so much more than that. Doctor, you are a clever man; though, you are very unobservant at times.. Surely you have guessed at what we were trying to accomplish. I'm sure you have a few ideas," Kovarian insisted, enjoying the little game she was playing with them immensely. She knew they would have to play along because none of them were getting away from her soldiers, and she knew they wouldn't try when the innocent life of Imogen was at stake.

"What does it matter now? Whatever those tests were they failed because I haven't killed the Doctor, and there is nothing in any time or space which could make me," blurted River in the same passionate tone as her mother. The red-head, and the curly-haired woman were alike in more ways than anyone could imagine. One of these ways was when it came to their children; they could be ruthless if the situation demanded it.

"That was never my intention, dear," chuckled Kovarian with a knowing glint in her eyes.

"Then why don't you enlighten us. What was your intention with all the testing on her? You must have been trying to accomplish something," snarled a very frustrated Doctor.

"Oh, we were, and we accomplished it," she smiled devilishly at the Doctor as she said this before turning to one of the soldiers standing beside her and barked an order.

"Bring it to me." The soldier she spoke to gave a curt nod then turned and marched from the room without a word.

"What? Bring what?" demanded the Doctor as he rebelled against the men restraining him. He wasn't trying to get away, and he didn't manage it. His struggling was more of a way to vent his frustration. He needed to think, but he couldn't think properly unless he was moving.

"Oh, you'll see. And I'm sure you'll be very surprised and proud of what we managed to accomplish," was the cool answer from Kovarian.

"I will never be proud of anything accomplished by you unless it is a complete and total surrender," hissed the Doctor.

"You would like that, wouldn't you?" The Doctor did not have time to respond; for, the soldier who had been dispatched to get the object for Kovarian had returned with the object and it left the Doctor, his wife, and her parents speechless.

"Isn't it beautiful? Melody, dear, we never meant for you to kill the Doctor. We knew that your ties to him through your parents would make that an impossibility, so we created something without those ties with your same DNA. You were simply a distraction. Here is what will kill the Doctor," Kovarian purred as she laid her hand gingerly on the brown-haired head of a little girl they all recognized. Shock was written all over River's face. Amy's was filled with anger and Rory's horror, but the Doctor was expressionless. But it was easy to see that the wheels of his mind where spinning rapidly. That was cause to make anyone worry, but Kovarian stood calmly stroking the head of the little girl at her side. The child's eyes were fixed on River.

"She is superior to you in every way Melody Pond. I like to call her Melody 2.0." And the name was accurate. The child looked the spitting image of River as a child. Amy remembered the day in the orphanage and all the pictures of young Melody Pond. There was no freckle out of place. The only difference were their eyes. Melody's/ River's had always been green and full of life, but this child's-they were black. Lifeless. Dead.


End file.
